For the first time since the Israel-Hamas war started on October 7, the Rafah crossing on Egypt’s border with Israel has been open to only a limited number of people temporarily.
These people include those who are critically injured and those with International passports. These foreign passport holders include Palestinians holding Japanese, Austrian, Bulgarian, Indonesian, Jordanian, Italian, Greek, Australian, and Czech citizenship. Others include people working for different NGOs with passports from Spain, Italy, the Philippines, Haiti, Germany, the US, Taiwan, Japan, Austria, Mexico, France, Kenya, Nigeria, Australia, South Africa, Armenia, Uganda, Ghana, Jordan, Sierra Leone, Ukraine, Czech Republic, New Zealand and Australia.
In a deal arranged by Qatar and Egypt, 500 foreign passport holders will be allowed to leave Gaza today. However, an Al Jazeera reporter present at Rafah crossing says the situation there is chaotic as many (more than 500) who are there don’t have their names on the list.
Meanwhile, many humanitarian groups have criticized Israel’s attack on the Jabalia refugee camp, which resulted in approximately 400 casualties, labeling the act a “wake-up call” for world leaders to insist on a ceasefire by Israel. Words from the Palestinian Prisoners Society to the media group Al Jazeera says that at least 50 Palestinians were detained overnight in the occupied West Bank.
Currently, there is a communication blackout across the strip as Internationaid workers struggle with the fuel shortage situation.
