Egypt Rejects Israel Obstruction of Aid to Gaza

January 16, 2024 Hour: 12:09 am

On Sunday, Egypt again rejected Israeli statements on the Rafah crossing and accused Israel of obstructing the entry of vital aid to the embattled Gaza Strip.

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The Rafah crossing, which links Egypt to the coastal enclave, has remained open since the beginning of the crisis on October 7, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmed Abu-Zeid reaffirmed during a television interview.

We have worked tirelessly to facilitate the entry of a substantial amount of aid into Gaza, he stressed.

He noted that Israeli measures, including strict inspection processes, prevent a greater volume of goods into the territory, which has been experiencing a severe humanitarian crisis since the beginning of the aggression 100 days ago.

Abu Zeid’s statements are the second official response to Israeli claims before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) that Egypt is limiting international aid to the Strip.

Israeli attacks have continued overnight across Gaza, with at least 132 Palestinians killed in the past 24 hours.

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January 16, 2024

Earlier, the head of the State Information Service, Diaa Rashwan, described the neighboring country’s allegations against Cairo as false.

Rashwan described the claims presented by the Israeli defense team before the ICJ as lies.

After being accused with documented evidence of war crimes and genocide before the ICJ, Israel resorted to “hurling accusations against our country in an attempt to escape its likely conviction by the court,” Rashwan said in a statement.

The official recalled that members of that country’s government, including the prime minister and the heads of defense and energy, confirmed dozens of times in public statements that they would not allow the entry into the coastal enclave of vital goods.

Our national sovereignty extends only to the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing, while the other side of it, in Gaza, is subject to the authority of the royal occupation, he stressed.

In this regard, he stressed that on numerous occasions Cairo asserted that “the Rafah crossing from the Egyptian side is open without interruption.”

Rashwan clarified that trucks loaded with aid travel from the Egyptian side to the Karm Abu Salem crossing, which connects the Strip and Israel, to be inspected by the Israeli army, and only then can they enter the enclave.