A report Sunday said that the leadership of Hamas was considering declaring Gaza an independent state, separating it from the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah. As part of the move, Gaza would completely cut off trade with Israel, replacing it with trade via Egypt. Sources in Hamas said that there was no reason not to seek much closer ties with Egypt, now that the Muslim Brotherhood is running the country. Trade with Egypt is much more important than trade with Israel, the report quoted top Hamas terrorists as saying, so the move would benefit Gaza.

Officials in Ramallah were quoted in the report as being vehemently opposed to the move, which, they said, “would completely bury the two-state solution.”