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Ismailia, Egypt: Egypt said on Monday that Israel was not co-operating with delivery of aid into Gaza and evacuations of foreign passport holders via the only entry it does not wholly control, leaving hundreds of tonnes of supplies stuck.
Cairo says the Rafah crossing, a potentially vital opening for desperately needed supplies into the Israeli-besieged Palestinian enclave, is not officially closed but was made inoperable due to Israeli air strikes on the Gaza side.
As Israel’s bombardment and siege of Gaza has intensified, the territory’s 2.3 million residents have been left without power, pushing health and water services to the brink of collapse, with fuel for hospital generators running low.
“There is an urgent need to alleviate the suffering of Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” Egypt’s Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told reporters, adding that talks with Israel had not been fruitful.
“Until now the Israeli government has not taken a position on opening the Rafah crossing from the Gaza side to allow the entrance of assistance and exit of citizens of third countries.”
US officials were hoping that Rafah would operate for a few hours late on Monday, White House spokesman John Kirby said, adding that earlier hopes for opening the crossing had been dashed.
The ongoing war made delivery of aid through Rafah “very difficult”, UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric said.
“There will need to be a mechanism given that it implicates a lot of parties, some of which are not on speaking terms, to put it mildly. We’re working on that with key partners,” he told reporters in New York on Monday.
Hamas-affiliated radio station Aqsa said Israeli shelling hit the Rafah crossing area again on Monday. The Egyptian side of the border appeared deserted on Monday afternoon, with aid supplies being stockpiled in the nearby city of Al Arish.
Read the full report here.
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