Egypt’s Role in Gaza Humanitarian Aid

During a joint press conference with the President of Vietnam at the Ittihadiya Palace, President Sisi stated that “there are more than 5,000 aid trucks in Egyptian territories ready to enter the Gaza Strip from Egypt and other countries, but the Israeli side is controlling and stationed on the other side at the Rafah crossing.” The Egyptian president affirmed that “Cairo has not abandoned its role in delivering humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza, nor has it participated in the blockade of the Strip,” noting that it is working to bring the largest volume of aid into the Strip to stop the systematic extermination of the Palestinian people. He added that “Egypt will remain a gateway for aid entry, not a gateway for Palestinian migration,” continuing, “More than 70% of the humanitarian aid that entered the Gaza Strip is Egyptian.” Sisi denied that “Egypt has closed the Rafah crossing,” confirming that “it was destroyed four times during this war and Egypt is the one that restored it.” In a related context, the Egyptian army confirmed last Sunday areas that are difficult to reach in the Gaza Strip. The spokesperson for the Egyptian armed forces, Gharib Abdel Hafez, announced that his country continues aerial drops of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. Abdel Hafez posted a statement on his official social media accounts, saying: “Nine military transport planes have taken off from Egypt over the past three days, loaded with tens of tons to perform aerial drops on areas that are difficult to reach by land in the Gaza Strip.” The Egyptian military official confirmed that “this coincided with the continued flow of aid trucks on land into the Gaza Strip.” The Egyptian army had announced last Wednesday that four military transport planes headed towards the Gaza Strip to drop tons of food and humanitarian aid on the Strip. The Gaza Strip is experiencing its worst humanitarian crises, as the residents of the Strip suffer from severe famine waged by Israel since October 7, 2023. Israel has closed all crossings with the Strip for months and has prevented most food and medical aid from entering, causing famine to spread in the Strip. The Palestinian Ministry of Health in the Gaza Strip announced today, Tuesday, that the death toll has risen to 61,020, and the number of injured has increased to 150,671 since October 7, 2023.