Egypt: Who wants to send aid to Gaza can deliver through al Arish Airport and the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip is open for business and hasn’t been closed

The Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement on Thursday that Egypt is directing international aid provided by those wishing to provide relief to the residents of the Gaza Strip to al Arish International Airport in the northern Sinai Peninsula.

The Egyptian al Arish Airport in Sinai, northeast of the country, received the first shipments of relief aid from Jordan in preparation for sending it to Gaza, to alleviate the suffering of the Strip in light of the continuing Israeli bombing after the Hamas attack.

Jordanian media reported on Thursday that the first relief aid planes were sent to Gaza, via Egypt’s al Arish Airport.

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement said that Egypt calls on all countries and regional and international organizations wishing to provide humanitarian and relief aid to the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip, to alleviate their suffering and to respond to their suffering as a result of the violent and continuous Israeli bombing, to deliver that aid to al Arish International Airport, which has been designated by the authorities.

Egypt will receive international humanitarian aid from various international parties and organizations.

The statement added that the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip is open for business and has not been closed at any stage since the beginning of the current crisis.

The statement also indicated that Egypt called on Israel to avoid targeting the Palestinian side of the crossing after this side was destroyed as a result of repeated Israeli bombing, which prevented the normal conduct of operations there.

Two Egyptian security sources said that al Arish Airport in North Sinai, about 45 kilometers from the Gaza border, is preparing to receive three aid flights from Qatar and Jordan, but they won’t leave the airport until humanitarian corridors are established.

They added that Egypt and Jordan had received assurances from the United States that aid would be delivered to Gaza, without providing details.

Israel said there would be no humanitarian break in its siege of Gaza until all hostages held by the movement were released.

The air strikes, the intense and violent bombing of the Gaza Strip, and Israel’s imposition of a strict blockade on it caused concern in Egypt.

The movement of registered passengers through the Rafah crossing, which is subject to strict security and monitoring operations, has stopped since Israel bombed the Palestinian side of the crossing this week.

Egypt, which is a key mediator between Israel and the Palestinians and played an important role during periods of unrest and escalation of violence in the Gaza Strip, says it’s trying to facilitate the delivery of relief aid, but the situation inside the Gaza Strip undermines those efforts.

Egypt also indicated its refusal to force the residents of the Gaza Strip to enter its territory through its southern borders.

Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said in a press conference with his Lithuanian counterpart that Egypt has stressed from the beginning that the Rafah crossing will remain open to provide humanitarian aid, indicating that it will remain open until the urgent humanitarian needs of the Gaza Strip are met.

The Egyptian presidency said in a statement on Thursday that Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al Sisi stressed during a phone call with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak the necessity of ensuring the regularity of humanitarian and relief services and aid to the Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.

The statement stated, “The two sides agreed on the importance of continuing and intensifying efforts aimed at reducing tension, protecting civilians on both sides, and preventing the deterioration of the security and humanitarian conditions”.

He also added that al Sisi informed Sunak that Egypt is continuing efforts to push for calm and maximum restraint to prevent a slide into more bloodshed, the price of which will be paid by innocent people and whose consequences will extend to the entire region.