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In Pictures

Gallery|Humanitarian Crises

Gaza border opening raises Palestinians’ hopes

Thousands cross into or out of besieged territory through Rafah crossing after two months of closed borders.

Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Palestinians massed the nearby Abu Yousef an-Najjar Sports Centre while they waited for approval to pass the border. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
By Ezz Zanoun
Published On 14 Feb 201614 Feb 2016
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For the second day in a row, hundreds of Palestinians have gathered in the southern part of the besieged Gaza Strip with hope of passing through the rarely opened Rafah crossing.

Sunday’s border opening comes a day after more than 700 people were allowed to enter Egypt a day earlier, as well as more than 700 others who were allowed to return to Gaza after being stuck in Egypt for months.

Gaza has endured a tight blockade, enforced by both Israel and Egypt, since the Palestinian group Hamas took control of the territory in 2007.

Egyptian authorities open the border only for brief periods every few months, according to Gisha Legal Centre for Freedom of Movement, an Israeli rights group.


READ MORE: Palestinians in Gaza mass for rare Rafah border opening


Egypt has severely restricted entry through Rafah since June 2013, when Abdel Fattah el-Sisi became president following the overthrow of his predecessor, Mohamed Morsi.

The crossing was last opened in early December.

More than 25,000 people have registered to cross Rafah because of urgent needs, including about 3,500 who need to travel for medical purposes, according to a report published at the local Maan News Agency.

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Gisha notes that “Rafah crossing was open on 27 days only, with transit out of Gaza to Egypt barred on four of these” during the first nine months of 2015.

Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Thousands need to travel abroad to receive medical treatment after the 2014 Israeli war in Gaza. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
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Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
An estimated 70 percent of Palestinians in Gaza depend on humanitarian aid after three Israeli wars since 2008. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
There was confusion and chaos as hundreds queued in long lines for hours on Saturday. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Gaza's Ministry of Health recorded more than 10,600 injuries during that war, but travel restrictions block most from entering Israel through the Erez crossing in the strip's north. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Of the estimated 1.9 million Palestinians in Gaza, more than 80 percent cannot pass through the Israeli Erez crossing, says Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Passengers are only able to travel through Rafah with a Palestinian Authority-issued passport, which is given only with Israeli approval. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
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Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Many people screamed, while children cried, during the long wait on Saturday. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Hamas, the party controlling Gaza, has called on Egypt to permanently open the Rafah crossing. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
At least eight buses transported travellers from the sports centre to the Egypt border. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]
Ezz Zanoun Rafah Gaza for AJE - DON''T USE
Others want to leave Gaza, where unemployment is at 41 percent, to continue their studies or find work abroad. [Ezz Zanoun/Al Jazeera]


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