Israel reopens Gaza border crossings

GAZA, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- Israeli officials reopened crossings into the Gaza Strip despite an escalation of violence along the border in recent days, officials said.

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak made the decision to allow about 80 trucks loaded with medicine, food and other goods to cross into Gaza Friday after receiving requests from the international community, the BBC reported.

Barak made the move despite at least 50 rockets being fired into Israel's Negev desert region by members of the Hamas group of Palestinian militants this week, following the end of a six-month Gaza cease-fire.

The United Nations had warned that the Israeli blockade of Gaza was precipitating a humanitarian crisis, with U.N. officials telling the BBC that four out of five Gazans are dependent on donated food and that the U.N. warehouses there had been emptied.

Israeli officials did not say how long the crossings would remain open, but a representative told the broadcaster the security situation being assessed on a daily basis.