International Mideast envoy James Wolfensohn on Sunday warned that time is running out for Israel and the Palestinians to wrap up a deal on opening the Gaza Strip's border crossings, saying it would be a «tragedy» if an agreement isn't reached soon, AP reported. The fate of the border crossings is one of the most important unresolved issues in the wake of Israel's unilateral withdrawal from Gaza in September. Israel closed Gaza's border with Egypt shortly before the pullout, and has restricted the movement of cargo into Israel, the main market for Palestinian goods. The Palestinians say reopening the crossings is essential to rebuilding Gaza's shattered economy, especially with the harvest season approaching. Wolfensohn, who has brokered months of talks on the issue, was meeting with senior Israeli and Palestinian officials late Sunday in hopes of breaking the impasse. --More 2314 Local Time 2014 GMT
