Palestinian doctors demand Egypt-Gaza border re-open
Medics and patients protested on Thursday at Gaza's Rafah border, demanding that Egypt re-open the frontier for people seeking medical treatment.
1 min read
Rafah is Gaza's main entry point to Egypt [Getty]
Dozens of Palestinian doctors and patients staged a sit-in at the Rafah border crossing in southern Gaza on Thursday, demanding Egypt reopen the frontier to allow people to travel for medical treatment.
The crossing is Gaza's only gateway to the world not controlled by Israel - but it has been shut since October 25, after 30 Egyptian soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing in the north of Egypt's Sinai peninsula.
Cairo has ordered the demolition of homes along its side of the border to create a "buffer zone" with Gaza, ostensibly to prevent the smuggling of weapons or members of armed groups into Egypt.
"Open the terminal" read the signs of demonstrators on Thursday. Some of those protesting were lying on orange stretchers.
"The closure threatens cancer patients," read another.
"The crossing must be opened to allow in medication and medical delegations, and to allow Gaza patients to cross for treatment in specialist hospitals in Egypt and in the Arab world," said Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for Gaza's health ministry.
Relations between the Gazan and Egyptian leaderships have badly soured since the overthrow of President Morsi and the ensuing crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood and its followers.
The crossing is Gaza's only gateway to the world not controlled by Israel - but it has been shut since October 25, after 30 Egyptian soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing in the north of Egypt's Sinai peninsula.
Cairo has ordered the demolition of homes along its side of the border to create a "buffer zone" with Gaza, ostensibly to prevent the smuggling of weapons or members of armed groups into Egypt.
"Open the terminal" read the signs of demonstrators on Thursday. Some of those protesting were lying on orange stretchers.
"The closure threatens cancer patients," read another.
"The crossing must be opened to allow in medication and medical delegations, and to allow Gaza patients to cross for treatment in specialist hospitals in Egypt and in the Arab world," said Ashraf al-Qudra, spokesman for Gaza's health ministry.
Relations between the Gazan and Egyptian leaderships have badly soured since the overthrow of President Morsi and the ensuing crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood and its followers.
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