Egypt rejects use of Rafah border crossing to tighten siege on war-torn Gaza

Egypt’s president on Saturday warned against using Gaza’s southern Rafah border crossing to tighten the blockade on the besieged Gaza Strip, Anadolu Agency reports.

“Egypt also rejects using the Rafah crossing as a tool to tighten the siege on the Palestinian people in Gaza,” Abdel Fattah al-Sisi told a Cairo press conference alongside his Serbian counterpart Aleksandar Vucic.

He added that he confirms “Egypt’s position based on the inevitability of achieving an immediate and comprehensive cease-fire at the soonest time and Egypt’s categorical rejection of any form of displacement as well as any attempt to liquidate the Palestinian cause,” said the Egyptian presidency.

Sisi also stressed the need to stop Israeli forces from targeting civilians and violent attacks by illegal Israeli settlers in the West Bank.

On May 7, the Israeli army seized control of the southern Rafah crossing connecting Gaza and Egypt following an announcement by Tel Aviv of a military operation in the densely populated city of Rafah, disregarding international warnings about the repercussions.

READ: Gaza government accuses Israel of ‘spreading fake news’ to distract from its deadly attack on displaced Palestinians’ tents

The humanitarian situation in Gaza has since deteriorated due to the blocking of aid and the suspension of patient transfers for medical treatment abroad, compounded by the closure of most hospitals in the area.

Israel, flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas.

More than 38,000 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 88,000 injured, according to local health authorities.

Over nine months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

​​​​​​​Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.

READ: Jordan urges global action in wake of Israeli attack on Gaza camp for displaced