(AhlulBayt News Agency) - Egyptian authorities Saturday opened the Rafah crossing between the besieged Gaza Strip and Egypt for travelers to pass from both sides until the end of Sunday.
According to the department of crossings and borders, the crossing is expected to be opened until Sunday evening as more than 25,000 Palestinians are still in need of traveling, while others are stranded on the Egyptian side waiting to return to the Gaza Strip.
The department noted that it had prepared the documents for Palestinians expected to cross on Saturday and Sunday, and has begun to organize buses that will transport travelers through the crossing.
On Tuesday, Egyptian authorities opened the crossing for three days to allow Palestinians passage for the Muslim Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia.
Egypt has upheld an Israeli military blockade on the Gaza Strip for the majority of the past three years, since the ousting of former President Muhammad Morsi in 2013 and the rise to power of President Abd al-Fattah al-Sisi in Egypt.
Due to the constraints on Palestinian movement through the crossing, many Gazans are commonly barred from leaving or entering the besieged coastal enclave, some for months at a time, as the crossing is only periodically opened by Egyptian authorities, stranding Palestinians on both sides of the crossing during closures.
In 2015, the Rafah crossing was closed for 344 days. The crossing has been reopened on a more regular basis since the beginning of 2016.
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source : Ma'an
Saturday
3 September 2016
12:56:28 PM
776563
Egyptian authorities Saturday opened the Rafah crossing between the besieged Gaza Strip and Egypt for travelers to pass from both sides until the end of Sunday.