EU delegation visits Rafah Border Crossing with Gaza, Egyptian Red Crescent's aid facilities

CAIRO – 6 June 2024: An EU delegation – led by Director for Neighborhood and Middle East Andreas Papaconstantinou - visited Thursday Rafah Border Crossing with Israel, inspecting aid trucks, logistic zone, warehouses of the Egyptian Red Crescent, and Arish General Hospital.

North Sinai Governor Mohamed Shousha noted that the Egyptian government had donated one third of the aid to Gaza, and that Egypt had been assuming the delivery mission of aid donated by foreign countries, international organizations and NGOs. That is in addition to treating Palestinian patients and injured at Egyptian hospitals.

Extra News reported on Wednesday that Egypt had prepared 350 aid trucks that would enter Gaza Strip through Karam Abou Salem Border Crossing with Israel.

In continuation of the Egyptian efforts to stop the Israeli genocidal war, Egypt- in cooperation with Jordan and the UEA- airdropped dozens of tons of humanitarian aid onto the besieged Gaza Strip over the past few days, said the Egyptian Ministry of Defense in a statement on Sunday.

The airdrop aims at alleviating the aggravation of the humanitarian situation, and sending aid in sufficient quantities to save the people of the Strip, the statement added.

Egypt affirmed its support for the Palestinian cause against the pressure it is being exposed to, to push the international community to carry out its responsibilities in confronting the Israeli aggression against Gaza, the statement continued.

The Rafah crossing has been closed since Israel escalated its operations in Gaza, deploying ground troops to Rafah city near the border with Egypt on May 7.

Israeli forces took control of the Palestinian side of the crossing, triggering Egypt’s condemnation. Cairo has since refused to coordinate with Israel on aid delivery to Gaza through the crossing.

Egypt has restated its unwavering position, emphasizing the requirement for Israeli withdrawal from the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing as a crucial condition for reopening the crossing.