On both sides of Rafah, the inactive border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, people gather and wait for one word: leave. In Gaza, dozens of Palestinians with dual nationality are waiting in front of the terminal this Monday in the hope of finally being evacuated from their countries after several days with their suitcases packed. In Egypt, dozens of trucks carrying humanitarian aid sent from countries such as Jordan and Turkey continue to park about 40 kilometers from the terminal in the town of El Arish. Negotiations on his arrival are taking place around the clock in the offices, possibly in connection with the fate of the almost 200 Israeli hostages in the hands of the Palestinian militias.
Meanwhile, in Gaza itself, bags for transporting bodies are running out, after 10 days of intense bombings that have claimed more than 2,800 lives, according to the head of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), Philippe Lazzarini.
Although Israel does not control Rafah, any agreement needs a green light. For this reason, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem this Monday after his tour of Egypt. On Sunday, before boarding a plane in Cairo, Blinken told journalists that Rafah was being “opened,” but this Monday it was still closed as a strip is running out of water, electricity and fuel and half the population is distributed. Outside the gates, an unprecedented military build-up awaited the warning signal for a ground invasion to begin.
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“The United Nations has stockpiles of food, water, medical supplies and fuel in Egypt, Jordan, the West Bank and Israel. They can be shipped in a few hours. To ensure delivery, our staff must be able to transport these supplies to and through Gaza safely and without obstacles,” stressed United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres.
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Also traveling to the region is United Nations emergency relief coordinator Martin Griffiths, who reported “serious discussions” with Israel, Egypt and other parties about providing aid to Gaza. “I am traveling to the region to try to help with the negotiations, to witness and express my solidarity with the extraordinary bravery of many thousands of humanitarian workers who are holding out and are still there to help the people of Gaza and to help in the West Bank,” he said.
The negotiations stalled
Despite the urgency of the situation, negotiations remain stalled as a series of contradictory information, denials and accusations come from one party to the other. Egypt, whose main concern is to prevent a wave of refugees before the bombings, points to Israel and declares itself “fully prepared” for the influx of aid and the departure of those lucky with foreign passports. “Unfortunately, the Israeli government has not yet taken a position that would allow the opening of the border crossing from the Gaza side to allow the entry of aid supplies or the exit of citizens from third countries,” his representative said in a press conference. Foreign Minister Sameh Shukry. “We hope there will be progress […] but unfortunately there is nothing new so far. “This is very serious.”
Israel is launching an all-out war to end Hamas, not wanting a single drop of fuel to fall into the hands of the armed Islamist movement. “Israel has not agreed to provide humanitarian aid to Hamas. “We are at war and will continue with full force until victory,” Netanyahu’s office clarified after the meeting with Blinken, Haaretz newspaper reports.
The head of Hamas’ Office for Relations with Palestinians Abroad, Khaled Meshaal, assured this Monday that his organization would support the release of 6,000 Palestinian prisoners, men and women, currently in Israeli prisons in exchange for the Israeli hostages in want their alliance.
Signs are mounting that the delivery of humanitarian aid to civilians depends on the fate of the 199 hostages taken by Hamas and Islamic Jihad in their massive attack on Saturday 7, according to new figures released on Monday by the was published by Israeli authorities. Blinken called for both “facilitating the arrival of humanitarian assistance for civilians” and a “quick and safe release” of the hostages. “Humanitarian aid for Gaza? “Until the Israeli hostages are returned home, not a single electrical outlet will work, nor will a faucet be turned on, nor will a truck with fuel enter,” Energy Minister Israel Katz said last Friday. Miki Zohar, head of the cultural department, also counters: “Those who massacre children, rape women and kidnap children deserve no mercy.”
According to the Lebanese newspaper Al Ajbar, Qatar is negotiating to sign an agreement under which Palestinian militias will release those abducted in exchange for the import of medicine and other goods to Gaza. Hamas has requested two lists – one of soldiers and one of civilians – and claims it does not know where all the prisoners are because it is only holding some of them and the situation is chaotic, according to the newspaper. After Saturday’s attack, Islamic Jihad claimed about thirty of them were hiding in Gaza, but Israeli security sources believe a number are also in the hands of people with no ties to either armed organization.
The Israeli newspaper Yediot Aharonot points out this Monday two possible pacts: a small one that provides for the import of medicines in exchange for a short suspension of bombing or a humanitarian corridor; or a broader approach that would involve exchanging children, women and elderly people abducted in Gaza for the release of Palestinian women and elderly people. Israel, which has in the past paid high prices for the recovery of hostages or their bodies, publicly insists that it will not negotiate on this occasion under any circumstances, as its sole aim is to destroy both the government and military structures of the country Hamas has been under orders to eradicate Gaza since 2007.
Although the firing of rockets against Israel from Gaza has decreased significantly in recent days and is concentrated in the nearest cities, Hamas’ armed wing, the Ezedin Al-Qasam Brigades, claimed responsibility for the launch this Monday, ” in response to the bombings.” against civilians”, from “projectile fire” against the two capitals Tel Aviv and Jerusalem as well as the main Ben Gurion airport, which was not hit. In Jerusalem, the sound of the warning siren forced the Knesset (Israeli Parliament) session to stop and Netanyahu to be taken to a safe location.
This Monday, the Israeli army released two pieces of information about the attack on Saturday 7, the deadliest day in its 75-year history. Of the approximately 1,400 dead (mostly civilians killed in their homes, vehicles or at a rave party), 291 were soldiers. According to spokesman Daniel Hagari, the number of kidnapped people is 199, exceeding the initial calculations.
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