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Eugene

(62,626 posts)
Wed May 11, 2016, 08:31 AM May 2016

Egypt opens Gaza crossing for 48 hours after 85-day closure

Source: Reuters

World | Wed May 11, 2016 7:41am EDT

Egypt opens Gaza crossing for 48 hours after 85-day closure

GAZA | BY NIDAL AL-MUGHRABI

Egypt opened its border with Gaza for the first time in three months on Wednesday, giving Palestinians a two-day respite from a closure stemming from friction between Cairo and the enclave's Islamist rulers.

Egypt's shuttering of Rafah and destruction of cross-border smuggling tunnels, along with tight restrictions imposed by Israel along its own frontier with Gaza, have deepened economic misery for many of the 1.9 million Palestinians in the enclave.

Egypt's military-backed government has kept its border with the Gaza Strip largely closed since Mohamed Mursi of the Muslim Brotherhood, was ousted as president three years ago.

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Some 30,000 Gazans are on a waiting list to cross at Rafah. Only a few thousand, including patients, students and holders of residency permits in third countries, were likely to do so on Wednesday and Thursday before it closes again.

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Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-palestinians-egypt-gaza-idUSKCN0Y21AK
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