An explosion targeted Palestinian prime minister Rami Hamdallah’s convoy as he arrived in the Gaza Strip on Tuesday for a rare visit, lightly wounding seven people, officials and witnesses said.

Hamdallah was not injured in the explosion, which occurred shortly after his convoy entered the territory, a security source in the convoy said.

Palestinian intelligence chief Majid Faraj was part of the convoy but was not hurt either, the security source said.

A statement on official Palestinian media said president Mahmud Abbas considered it a “cowardly targeting” of Hamdallah’s convoy.

The Hamas interior ministry confirmed there had been an explosion and said security forces were investigating the incident. It described the blast as a crime aimed at undermining latest efforts of reconciliation between Hamas and rival Fatah.

The two major Palestinian factions signed a reconciliation agreement in October that was supposed to see Hamas hand over power, but it has all but collapsed.

It was announced then that Hamdallah cut his visit to Gaza.

Source: Agencies