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In Pictures: Egypt-Gaza Rafah border crossing opens for 3 days

People will be allowed to leave for the first time since the coronavirus outbreak.

epa08597371 A Palestinian Ambulance crosses into Egypt through the Rafah border crossing between Gaza Strip and Egypt after five months of closure as a precautionary measure against the spreading of t
A Palestinian ambulance crosses into Egypt through the Rafah border crossing. [Mohammed Saber/EPA]
Published On 12 Aug 202012 Aug 2020
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The only crossing between Gaza and Egypt opened on Tuesday for 72 hours, allowing people to leave the Palestinian enclave for the first time since the outbreak of the novel coronavirus.

The Rafah crossing in southern Gaza was closed in March, as Hamas – the group that administers the Gaza Strip – sought to guard against a major virus outbreak in the densely populated territory with weak health infrastructure.

Rafah was opened in April for three days, but only to allow Gazans stranded abroad to return home.

Gaza’s interior ministry spokesman Iyad al-Bazam said people who hold foreign passports, foreign residency permits or emergency medical needs “will be allowed to leave”.

Hundreds of Gazans had assembled before dawn in a waiting area, preparing to exit.

Gaza resident Hatem al-Mansi told AFP that while he needed medical care, he was worried about the possibility of coronavirus infection in Egypt, which has registered 95,000 cases, compared with just 81 in Gaza. 

“There is a fear of being infected with COVID-19 in cars or buses in Egypt,” he told AFP. “In Gaza, we don’t have that problem.”

Anyone returning from Egypt will be placed in a dedicated quarantine facility for three weeks, said the head of infection control at Gaza’s health ministry, Rami Al-Abadala.

Palestinians sit in a taxi before leaving Rafah border crossing with Egypt, which was reopened for the first time since it was closed in March over Covid-19 concerns, in the southern Gaza strip August
Rafah border crossing was reopened for movement both ways for the first time since March. [Ibraheem Abu Mustafa/Reuters]
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epa08597321 Palestinians wait to cross into Egypt through the Rafah border crossing between Gaza Strip and Egypt after five months of closure as a precautionary measure against the spreading of the co
Palestinians wait to cross into Egypt through the Rafah crossing. Egyptian authorities reopened the crossing for three days to allow humanitarian cases through. [Mohammed Saber/EPA]
Palestinians wait to cross to the Egyptian side of Rafah border crossing after months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic in the southern Gaza Strip, on August 11, 2020. (Photo by SAID KHATIB /
Hundreds of Gazans assembled before dawn in the waiting area. [Said Khatib/AFP]
Palestinians wait to cross to the Egyptian side of Rafah border crossing after months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic in the southern Gaza Strip, on August 11, 2020. (Photo by SAID KHATIB /
People needing medical treatment that is not available in Gaza, students enrolled at Egyptian universities and Gazans with jobs abroad will be allowed to cross. [Said Khatib/AFP]
A Palestinian woman waits next to her luggage to leave Rafah border crossing with Egypt after months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic in the southern Gaza Strip, on August 11, 2020. (Photo b
A Palestinian woman waits to leave through the Rafah border crossing. Gaza's interior ministry spokesperson Iyad al-Bazam said people who hold foreign passports, foreign residency permits or emergency medical needs "will be allowed to leave". [Said Khatib/AFP]
epa08596842 A Palestinian girl waits with her family to cross into Egypt through the Rafah border crossing between Gaza Strip and Egypt after five months of closure as a precautionary measure against
A Palestinian girl waits with her family at the border crossing. Gaza, under an Israeli-enforced blockade since 2007, had less than 100 coronavirus cases since access to it was tightly restricted well before the outbreak. [Mohammed Saber/EPA]
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Palestinians prepare to leave Rafah border crossing with Egypt after months of closure due to the coronavirus pandemic in the southern Gaza Strip, on August 11, 2020 . (Photo by SAID KHATIB / AFP)
Citing security concerns, Israel and Egypt tightly restrict cross-border movement with Gaza. Rafah is the only exit point for Gazans seeking to travel to other countries. [Said Khatib/AFP]


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