[News] Gaza-bound food left to rot in the sun amid Israeli closure of Rafah

[Anti-Imperialist News]

english.almayadeen.net
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/gaza-bound-food-left-to-rot-in-the-sun-amid-israeli-closure>
Gaza-bound food left to rot in the sun amid Israeli closure of Rafah
Al Mayadeen English
May 24, 2024
------------------------------

A backlog of aid has accumulated on the road between the Egyptian side of
the border and the town of al-Arish.

   - [image: Food for Gaza rotting amid Israeli closure of Rafah]
   <https://alpha-en-media.almayadeen.net/media/image/2024/5/24/f8df9ac9-09c9-4afd-bc21-e799392ac8a7.png?width=1000>
   Palestinians are storming trucks loaded with humanitarian aid on May 18,
   2024. (*AP*)

Food supplies awaiting entry into Gaza from Egypt have begun to rot, as the
border crossing remains closed by Israeli authorities for the third week
now.

Rafah was a major entry route for minimal humanitarian aid and commercial
commodities before "Israel" escalated its aggression on May 6
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/iof-continues-to-shell-rafah--crossings-still-closed>,
seizing control of the crossing from the Palestinian side.

According to Egyptian authorities
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/egypt-employs-russian-weapons-in-army-training>
and sources, the military aggression continues to jeopardize humanitarian
efforts, and "Israel" must return the crossing to Palestinians.

A backlog of aid has accumulated on the road between the Egyptian side of
the border and the town of al-Arish, which is roughly 45 kilometers (28
miles) west of Rafah and serves as an entry point for foreign humanitarian
deliveries.

A truck driver told *Reuters *that his products had been on his truck for a
month, slowly rotting in the heat. "Apples, bananas, chicken and cheese, a
lot of things have gone rotten, some stuff has been returned and is being
sold for a quarter of its price," he added.

"I'm sorry to say that the onions we're carrying will at best be eaten by
animals because of the worms in them."

According to UN data, no vehicles have traveled via Rafah since May 5, and
just a handful have passed through the neighboring Israeli border of Karem
Abu Salem crossing.

The number of people awaiting assistance has increased substantially
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/-israel--continues-genocide-in-gaza--deliberately-causes-hea>,
with some trapped for more than two months, according to Khaled Zayed, head
of the Egyptian Red Crescent in the region.

Zayed reported that some items are in need of specific temperatures,
expressing hope that the border will reopen "as soon as possible."

Some food was sold at a discount on the local market in northern Sinai,
resulting in the confiscation of supplies of rotting eggs, according to
local authorities from Egypt's Ministry of Supply.

Inside Gaza, there have been concerns regarding the quality of delayed food
supply that arrived before Rafah closed or via other crossings.

Palestinian medical and police personnel who used to inspect items entering
Gaza were unable to do so during "Israel's" attack, according to Ismail
al-Thawabta, the head of Gaza Government Media Office.
Egypt rejected Israeli proposal for joint coordination to reopen Rafah

*Reuters *reported on May 16, citing Egyptian sources, that Egypt rejected
an Israeli proposal
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/egypt-rejects-israeli-proposal-for-joint-coordination-to-reo>
for joint coordination to reopen the Rafah crossing between Egypt's Sinai
Peninsula and the Gaza Strip, along with managing its future operation.

Israeli officials from the Shin Bet security service introduced the plan
during a visit to Cairo on May 15 amid heightened tensions between the two
sides following the recent Israeli aggression on the city of Rafah in
southern Gaza and the occupation of the main Rafah crossing with Egypt.

The crossing has historically served as a vital conduit for humanitarian
aid entering Gaza and as an exit point for medical evacuees. Egypt insists
that the crossing should be managed solely
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/egypt-blames--israel--for-humanitarian-crisis-in-gaza>
by Palestinian authorities.

Throughout the week, Cairo and Tel Aviv have exchanged accusations
regarding the closure of the border crossing and the consequent hindrance
of humanitarian aid to the besieged Gaza Strip.

Egypt stressed that the closure of Rafah is solely due to the Israeli
military operation, repeatedly cautioning that the Israeli offensive seeks
to empty Gaza and forcibly displace Palestinians into the North African
country.
ICJ orders 'Israel' to immediately halt offensive on Rafah

In a momentous emergency verdict on South Africa's complaint accusing
"Israel" of genocide, judges at the United Nation's highest court, the
International Court of Justice (ICJ), ordered "Israel" to immediately halt
its military assault on Rafah
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/icj-orders--israel--to-immediately-halt-offensive-on-rafah>
in southern Gaza on Friday.

The published ICJ filings revealed that South Africa asked the court to
order "Israel's" complete withdrawal from Rafah, the "last refuge" for the
people of Gaza
<https://english.almayadeen.net/news/politics/-israel--continues-genocide-in-gaza--deliberately-causes-hea>,
as well as the allowance of unrestricted access to UN officials,
organizations, journalists, investigators, and humanitarian aid into the
Strip.

South Africa reiterated that "Israel" is killing Palestinian civilians
while starving them by blocking humanitarian aid deliveries to the Gaza
Strip. "Those who have survived so far are facing imminent death now, and
an order from the Court is needed to ensure their survival," South Africa
said in its filing.

It is worth noting that the ICJ failed to charge "Israel" with genocide but
imposed a set of anti-genocide measures the occupation blatantly neglected.
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/news_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20240524/57261ebe/attachment-0001.htm>
-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: f8df9ac9-09c9-4afd-bc21-e799392ac8a7.webp
Type: image/webp
Size: 631352 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://freedomarchives.org/pipermail/news_freedomarchives.org/attachments/20240524/57261ebe/attachment-0001.webp>