Palestinians force way across Egypt border

GAZA, June 4 (UPI) -- Palestinians Saturday pushed through the Rafah Crossing from Gaza to Egypt after waiting hours on buses, officials said.

Egypt had temporarily closed the crossing to vehicles from Gaza because of maintenance work, CNN reported. The crossing was open to pedestrians and vehicles traveling from Egypt to Gaza.

Officials in Gaza were not informed about the closing or the reason for it.

Four buses sat for hours waiting for permission to cross, officials said. Some of the passengers eventually disembarked and pushed the gate open, breaking a chain.

No injuries were reported. The Palestinians were escorted back to the Gaza side and back to their buses, which returned to their starting points.

The crossing is scheduled to reopen Sunday.

Egypt announced plans recently to keep the Rafah Crossing open. It has been closed much of the time since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007.