Egypt: The Rafah crossing has not been closed since the start of the war on Gaza

Cairo (Al-Ittihad)

Yesterday, Egypt confirmed that it had opened the Rafah crossing on its side from the first moment of the war on Gaza, without restrictions or conditions, to bring humanitarian aid to the besieged people of the Gaza Strip.
This came in a statement issued by the Egyptian presidency, in response to statements made by US President Joe Biden, the day before yesterday, regarding the Rafah crossing, reiterating and strongly reaffirming Egypt’s rejection of the forced displacement of Palestinians outside their lands. According to the statement, Egypt stressed that “any attempts or efforts to displace the Palestinians outside their lands will fail, and that the only solution to the current situation is the two-state solution and the establishment of an independent Palestinian state on the borders of June 4, 1967, with East Jerusalem as its capital.”
Regarding Egypt’s position in bringing humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip and providing relief to the Palestinians, the statement indicated that “Egypt mobilized humanitarian aid in large quantities, whether from it, or from various countries of the world that sent aid to Al-Arish Airport,” pointing to the pressure exerted by Egypt strongly on all concerned parties. For this aid to enter the sector.
The statement explained that the continued Israeli bombing on the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, which was repeated 4 times, prevented the entry of aid, adding that as soon as the bombing ended, Egypt immediately rehabilitated the crossing and made the necessary technical adjustments, allowing the entry of the largest amount of aid to relieve the people of the Gaza Strip.
He pointed out that “the role played by Egypt in mobilizing humanitarian aid and bringing it into the Gaza Strip was leadership and stemmed from its sense of humanitarian responsibility for the Palestinian brothers in the Strip.”
He explained in this context that “Egypt has endured countless pressures to be able to coordinate the process of bringing aid into the Gaza Strip, and has made and continues to maintain extensive contacts with all parties, whether regional, international or international, to pressure in order to allow the entry of aid and increase its quantities in the required manner.”
He stated that about 80 percent of the humanitarian aid arriving in the Gaza Strip is provided by the Egyptian government, people and civil society, adding that the Egyptian authorities have also facilitated and coordinated the visits of international and UN officials to the Rafah crossing to inspect from the ground the tremendous efforts that Cairo is making in this regard. The statement highlighted Egypt's reaffirmation of its adherence and determination to its firm position calling for a ceasefire in Gaza as soon as possible to protect civilians who are subjected to the worst human suffering imaginable, and to save them from bombing, hunger and disease.
The statement indicated that the Egyptian authorities will continue to lead, organize, mobilize and bring humanitarian aid into the Strip in the largest possible quantity, calling on all concerned parties to cooperate and coordinate, and provide the necessary facilities to bring aid to the people of Gaza in the desired manner.