By Nidal al-Mughrabi

RAFAH, Gaza Strip, Jan 2 (Reuters) - About 2,200 Palestinian pilgrims who had been stranded in Egypt en route from Mecca returned to the Gaza Strip on Wednesday in defiance of Israel's demand to screen them for smuggled cash or weapons.

The pilgrims had been stuck in Egypt for about a week after completing the Muslim haj ritual in Saudi Arabia because Israel insisted they return to Hamas-run Gaza through its own border crossings.

Egypt's decision to let them back through Rafah, a terminal on its border with Gaza, drew a rebuke from Israel which has been trying to choke off Hamas while reviving peace talks with the Islamist group's rival, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas.

An aide to Israeli Defence Minister Ehud Barak, who met Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak last week, said the sides had agreed the pilgrims would enter Gaza through Israel's Kerem Shalom terminal and be vetted by security agents.

"What has happened in Rafah is in contravention of our agreements," the aide told Reuters on condition of anonymity.

Israel has no presence at Rafah although a U.S.-brokered deal between Israel and the Palestinians says the crossing cannot be opened without Israel's consent.

Egypt has mostly kept Rafah closed since Hamas routed Abbas's Fatah faction in Gaza in June.

Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert and Abbas are trying to make progress in peace talks launched at a November conference in Annapolis, Maryland. Unlike Fatah, Hamas opposes any accommodation with the Jewish state.

The Annapolis conference's host, U.S. President George W. Bush, will make a goodwill visit to Israel and the occupied West Bank next week.

Israeli forces killed six Palestinian gunmen near Gaza City on Wednesday and Barak repeated a demand that Abbas rein in militants in the West Bank, where two off-duty Israeli soldiers were killed last week.

"REVOLVING DOOR"

Israel's Shin Bet intelligence agency said two of the soldiers' killers were linked to Abbas's security services. That was denied by Abbas's administration which said the two had been arrested and would be tried in a Palestinian court. "We will see if the Palestinian Authority is opening a revolving door for them and, if so, the Israeli Defence Forces and security services will know how to put our hands on them (the soldiers' killers)," Barak told Israel Radio.

The pilgrims had been stranded in Egypt while Cairo tried to negotiate on their return with Israel and the Palestinians. Some smashed furniture and windows in protests at a shelter there.

"There was a tough humanitarian situation that we were facing here and that no one really wanted to see exacerbated. It's good at the end that they were able to get back to their homes," an Egyptian Foreign Ministry official said.

Asked whether there was a deal with Israel for the pilgrims to return, he said: "I am not aware of all the details."

Hamas's leader in Gaza, Ismail Haniyeh, thanked Egypt and said Saudi Arabia had also helped ensure the pilgrims' return "in dignity". Hamas television hailed it as a "victory".

"Thank God we have carried out our religious duties and returned to Gaza," said pilgrim Abu Mohammad after crossing back into Gaza. Performing the haj is a religious obligation for all Muslims who are physically able to do so.

Among those coming through Rafah were former Fatah-linked security officers who fled Gaza during Hamas's takeover. Fatah sources and witnesses said Hamas detained at least 15 of the Fatah men. Hamas sources put the number at nine.

Israel pulled troops and settlers out of the Gaza Strip in 2005 but effectively still controls its borders and has tightened its cordon around the territory since June. (Additional reporting by Rebecca Harrison and Brenda Gazzar in Jerusalem and Cynthia Johnston in Cairo; Writing by Dan Williams; Editing by Robert Woodward)

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