Connect with us

Hi, what are you looking for?

World

Egypt opens Gaza border for two days

-

Egypt opened its largely sealed border with the Gaza Strip on Friday for two days, Palestinian authorities said.

In just the third such opening this year, the crossing between the Palestinian enclave and Egypt's Sinai region will be open Friday and Saturday for humanitarian cases, the Palestinian embassy in Cairo said.

The Rafah crossing is the only exit for Gaza residents except into Israel, but Egypt has largely sealed it in recent years, citing security threats.

Egyptian authorities have a poor relationship with Gaza's Islamist rulers Hamas, whom they have accused of supporting attacks inside Egypt.

Both of the two previous border openings this year were cut short due to the security situation in Sinai.

The Egyptian army and police forces are engaged in a fierce conflict with armed Islamists, especially in the North Sinai governorate where an Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State is active.

Hundreds have been killed on both sides.

For more than a decade, Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on Gaza that critics say amounts to collective punishment of the coastal territory's two million Palestinian residents.

Israel says the blockade is necessary to isolate Hamas, with which it has fought three wars since 2008.

Egypt has also kept the Rafah crossing largely closed for several years.

In October, Egypt brokered a reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Fatah, the party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, that was supposed to see the Islamists give up power in Gaza.

But the deal has collapsed, with the two Palestinian groups trading blame.

Egypt opened its largely sealed border with the Gaza Strip on Friday for two days, Palestinian authorities said.

In just the third such opening this year, the crossing between the Palestinian enclave and Egypt’s Sinai region will be open Friday and Saturday for humanitarian cases, the Palestinian embassy in Cairo said.

The Rafah crossing is the only exit for Gaza residents except into Israel, but Egypt has largely sealed it in recent years, citing security threats.

Egyptian authorities have a poor relationship with Gaza’s Islamist rulers Hamas, whom they have accused of supporting attacks inside Egypt.

Both of the two previous border openings this year were cut short due to the security situation in Sinai.

The Egyptian army and police forces are engaged in a fierce conflict with armed Islamists, especially in the North Sinai governorate where an Egyptian affiliate of the Islamic State is active.

Hundreds have been killed on both sides.

For more than a decade, Israel has imposed a crippling blockade on Gaza that critics say amounts to collective punishment of the coastal territory’s two million Palestinian residents.

Israel says the blockade is necessary to isolate Hamas, with which it has fought three wars since 2008.

Egypt has also kept the Rafah crossing largely closed for several years.

In October, Egypt brokered a reconciliation agreement between Hamas and Fatah, the party of Palestinian president Mahmud Abbas, that was supposed to see the Islamists give up power in Gaza.

But the deal has collapsed, with the two Palestinian groups trading blame.

AFP
Written By

With 2,400 staff representing 100 different nationalities, AFP covers the world as a leading global news agency. AFP provides fast, comprehensive and verified coverage of the issues affecting our daily lives.

You may also like:

World

Calling for urgent action is the international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF)

World

Immigration is a symptom of a much deeper worldwide problem.

Business

Saudi Aramco President & CEO Amin Nasser speaks during the CERAWeek oil summit in Houston, Texas - Copyright AFP Mark FelixPointing to the still...

Business

A recent article in the Wall Street Journal infers that some workers might be falling out of the job market altogether.