Extending a helping gesture, Egypt opens Rafah crossing with Gaza for Ramazan

NewsBharati    18-May-2018
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Cairo, May 18: Making a rare decision, Egypt President, Abdel Fattah al-Sisi decided to open the Rafah crossing with Gaza for a month, allowing Palestinians to cross during the holy period of Ramzan. The decision to keep the crossing open was taken "to alleviate the suffering" of residents in the Palestinian enclave.

 

The President took the social media Facebook to inform the people about this decision and protract a good gesture towards the Palestinians. The Rafah crossing is Gaza's only gateway to the outside world not controlled by Israel, but Egypt has largely sealed it in recent years, citing security threats. It is usually open a few dozen days a year and such an extended period is rare.

Sisi's announcement comes after some 60 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire on the Gaza border earlier this week, with the victims described by Egypt's foreign ministry as "martyrs". A total of 114 Gazans have been killed in border protests and clashes since March 30, in the run-up to the controversial opening Monday of the US embassy in Jerusalem.

Egypt has relations with both Israel and Gaza rulers Hamas, giving Cairo an instrumental role in easing tensions between the two sides and alleviating the pressure on the territory's 2 million residents.

Taking the decision making it as a rare one, the gesture of opening the gates during the holy month of Ramzan for the Palestinian people relieving some stress.