The crossing has become the focus of attention in the escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas, with hundreds of thousands of Palestinians heading towards southern Gaza from the northern Strip to escape Israeli bombing.
Egyptian security sources said that more than 100 trucks were waiting near the Rafah crossing on the Egyptian side today, Thursday, although aid is not expected to enter until Friday.
There is more aid stuck in the Egyptian city of Al-Arish, about 45 kilometers from Rafah. Egypt said that it did not close the crossing, but that the Israeli bombing made it inoperable.
After US President Joe Biden spoke with his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on Wednesday, the United States said that Egypt had agreed to allow aid to reach the Palestinians through the crossing.
Where is the Rafah crossing located and who controls it?
The crossing is located in the southern Gaza Strip, a narrow strip of land inhabited by 2.3 million people and located between Israel, Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. Egypt controls it.
What was agreed upon regarding the aid corridor?
Biden told reporters that about 20 trucks carrying humanitarian aid would be allowed into the Strip. He did not mention a timetable for this, but a US spokesman said that this would happen in the coming days after repairs to the road were made.
Before the outbreak of the current violence on October 7, about 100 trucks loaded with aid were entering daily, according to the United Nations.
Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi said, “What is happening in Gaza now is an attempt to push the civilian population to seek refuge and migrate to Egypt.”
Why is the Rafah crossing important in this conflict?
In response to a cross-border infiltration by Hamas fighters this month that killed more than 1,400 people, Israel imposed a “total blockade” on Gaza, cutting off electricity to the Strip and preventing all food and fuel supplies from entering it. While the health authorities in Gaza announced the killing of about 3,500 Palestinians.
This means that the only possible route for humanitarian aid into Gaza is through Rafah from Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula. The crossing is also the only exit point for Gaza residents seeking to flee.
Foreign passport holders, including Americans, headed to the nearby area in the hope of being allowed out under any deal, although Cairo said aid must be delivered first.
Israel also asked Gazans to move south near Rafah to take cover from the bombing, but residents say there is no safe place in the crowded Strip.
What is the reason for the restrictions imposed on crossing from Rafah?
Egypt is concerned about the lack of security near the border with Gaza in northeastern Sinai, where it faced militant activity that peaked after 2013.
Since Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, Egypt has tightened restrictions on the flow of people and goods.
As is the case at the main crossings with Israel, restrictions are sometimes eased but not lifted and travelers need a security clearance and undergo lengthy checks to pass.
Egypt mediated between Israel and the Palestinian factions in previous periods of conflict and unrest, but it also closes the borders in these cases and only allows aid to enter and people to leave for treatment, and prevents any large-scale movement of people.
What efforts are being made to open the borders?
The United Nations has urged Israel to avoid a “humanitarian catastrophe” in Gaza, warning that food, fuel and even drinking water supplies are dangerously running low.
Hospitals say they are facing extreme difficulties in dealing with the wounded as backup generators run out of fuel.
US Secretary of State Anthony Blinken said on Tuesday that the United States and Israel agreed to develop a plan to deliver humanitarian aid to civilians in Gaza without Hamas benefiting from it.
#importance #Rafah #border #crossing #Gaza