GAZA, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- A gunbattle broke out at the Gaza-Egypt Rafah crossing on Friday, hours after it opened for the first time in about a month, Israel Radio reported.

    Two Palestinian officers were hurt by the gunfire and the Palestinians closed the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing,Palestinian sources were quoted as saying.

    The circumstances of the shooting were not immediately clear. Other media reports said that the incident took place inside the Gaza portion of the border terminal, which was corroborated by other Palestinian officials inside the building.

    A police official in Gaza was quoted as saying that police responded by opening fire and a gunbattle ensued, adding none ofthe EU monitors was hurt.

    The Rafah crossing opened at 8:00 a.m. (0500 GMT) Friday morning and was due to be closed at 6:00 p.m. (1500 GMT), an EU official said, adding that it would remain operational for twodays.

    The crossing, Gaza's unique gateway to the world bypassing Israel, opened ahead of the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan to allow thousands of pilgrims to pass through en route to Saudi Arabia.

    The crossing was closed late June when Palestinian militant groups captured an Israeli soldier.

    It has been partially reopened only a few times for short periods and the closures have left thousands stranded on either side of the border amid the persistent Israeli offensive on Gaza.

    The Egypt-Gaza border is controlled by the Palestinian National Authority and Egypt, under the monitoring by European Union officials. Enditem

Gaza-Egypt border reopens for 2 days: EU official

    GAZA, Sept. 22 (Xinhua) -- The Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, the only outlet for Palestinians in the Gaza Strip to the outside world, reopened on Friday, an EU official said.