Gaza: Rafah Border With Egypt Opens for Limited Evacuations

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Facts

  • After being closed during three weeks of conflict, Gaza's border crossing with Egypt opened for partial evacuations for the first time on Wednesday. While the Rafah crossing has so far allowed an estimated 200 aid trucks to pass, it was the first time people were allowed to cross — allowing an estimated 90 injured Palestinians and hundreds of dual citizens to enter Egypt.1
  • According to reporting from Reuters, the deal between Israel, Egypt, and Hamas was mediated by Qatar with collaboration from the US. A source for the publication said it's unknown how long the border crossing would remain open.2
  • Prior to Wednesday's announcement, the US State Department said over 400 American citizens were trapped in Gaza. It's not clear how many have so far been able to cross into Egypt.3
  • Meanwhile, for those that remain in the blockaded enclave, Israeli air strikes have continued. On Tuesday and Wednesday, Israel bombed the Jabaliya refugee camp near Gaza City, reportedly killing and wounding hundreds of people — though exact figures are currently unknown.4
  • According to the latest figures from the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry on Wednesday, nearly 8.8K Palestinians have now been killed — more than 3.6K of those children. Local health officials also said that 16 of Gaza's 35 hospitals are now not operational due to lack of fuel, including the region's only cancer clinic. There are reportedly more than 2K cancer patients in the Gaza Strip.5
  • Meanwhile, as Israel's ground offensive into Gaza continued, the Israeli Defense Forces said at least 15 soldiers were killed in fighting during the last day, reportedly taking the total number of soldiers killed to around 320 since Hamas' attack on Oct. 7, which killed an estimated 1.4K.6

Sources: 1The Guardian (a), 2Reuters (a), 3CBS, 4Associated Press, 5Reuters (b) and 6The Guardian (b).

Narratives

  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Al Jazeera. After weeks of bombardment and blockade, the limited opening of the Rafah border crossing is a welcome move — allowing those who are seriously injured to seek immediate medical treatment, as well as allowing dual nationals to escape. However, too many in Gaza remain perilously close to death in this humanitarian catastrophe.
  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by The Times of Israel. After Hamas' attack on Israel, the country was right to launch a war on the terror organization and seek to root it out. However, the war has also caused significant hardships on civilians so this deal mediated by Qatar is welcomed by Israel.

Predictions