An Egyptian convoy on the way to Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid to the stricken enclave had been stopped Saturday afternoon by Egyptian security forces due to security reasons.
The activists travelling with the convoy told Ahram Online on Saturday afternoon that the convoy had been stopped at a Sinai checkpoint by the Egyptian security forces, and was not being permitted to pass due to “security reasons.”
Gaza is entering the twelfth day of an Israeli military onslaught that has left at least 312 Palestinians dead, including many women and children.
Political activist Zizo Abdo told Ahram Online by phone on Saturday afternoon that the convoy has stopped at Balooza checkpoint, the first military checkpoint in North Sinai.
Abdo said the convoy constitutes 11 buses and a medical convoy, totaling over 550 people including students, workers, and prominent political figures such as leftist politician Khaled Ali, Constitution Party member Gameela Ismail and well-known revolutionary Ahmed Harara.
If the convoy is allowed to pass through the checkpoint, they are set to pass through Sinai’s Al-Arish city, an already troubled area where Egyptian security forces are battling a militant insurgency that has escalated since the ouster of president Mohamed Morsi last July.
After Al-Arish, they will move directly to the Rafah border crossing.
Egypt’s authorities have largely kept the crossing closed over the last months, citing security concerns related to the spike in Islamist militancy in Sinai.
However, the crossing has been opened a few times since the start of Israel’s offensive as an “exceptional” measure to transport injured Palestinians to Egyptian hospitals and deliver Egyptian as well as Arab aid to Gaza.
Convoy members are using the hashtag “#Egypt2Gaza” on social media to document their journey.
Similar Egyptian convoys were able to cross into Gaza during the Israeli assault on the strip in 2012, although at that time militant activity in Sinai was vastly reduced, and there were no Israeli ground troops in Gaza.
Source: Ahram Online
