Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, prepares to lay a wreath on the tomb of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in

 Ramallah. Photograph: Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images

Israel bars Gerry Adams from Gaza

Sinn Féin leader refused entry to Gaza Strip because of his support for Palestinians and plans to meet Hamas

• Associated Press in Jerusalem
• The Guardian, Friday 5 December 2014 18.05 GMT

Sinn Féin leader, Gerry Adams, prepares to lay a wreath on the tomb of Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat in

 Ramallah. Photograph: Abbas Momani/AFP/Getty Images

Sinn Féin leader Gerry Adams said on Friday that Israel had barred him from making a planned visit to the Gaza Strip during a three-day tour of the region.

Adams says he was not given a reason for the Israeli decision to prevent the trip. “I am not surprised by the decision but I am disappointed by it,” he said.

A spokesman for Israel’s foreign ministry, Emmanuel Nahshon, said that in consultation with defence officials the ministry decided to bar Adams from entering Gaza because of “his longstanding anti-Israeli positions and his plans to meet in the territory with leaders of Hamas”. Nahshon said that if Adams wanted to visit Gaza he could enter the territory from Egypt.

Israel fought a bloody 50-day war over the summer with the Hamas militant group, and views it as a terrorist organisation.

The Irish nationalist Sinn Féin party has long taken a pro-Palestinian position in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Earlier in his trip to the region, Adams met Isaac Herzog, leader of Israel’s opposition Labor party, and the Palestinian president, Mahmoud Abbas.

Adams said he had intended to meet NGOs, and visit hospitals and other public institutions in Gaza. He also acknowledged that he planned to meet Hamas leaders.