Tuesday, June 01, 2010
Elder of ZiyonEgyptian President Hosni Mubarak has ordered the opening of the Rafah border crossing to allow humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip.This happened a few hours ago.
"Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak has given orders to open the Rafah border crossing to allow humanitarian and medical aid into the Gaza Strip, as well as to receive medical cases which require access to Egyptian territory," said Egyptian news agency MENA.
"This comes as part of Egypt's moves to ease the suffering of the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip."
The move, urged by the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas against whom the embargo has been directed, prompted dozens of people to race to the crossing point in the southern Gaza Strip town of Rafah, though the gates appeared still to be closed.
According to Egyptian security sources in Rafah, the border opened on Tuesday at 1.30pm (1030 GMT). No date has been set for it to close again.
Yet I cannot find a single Gaza aid group that is quickly organizing to send supplies to Gazans.
Here is an unprecedented opportunity to help Gazans get the medical supplies, paper, toys and chocolate that we are told Israel is cruelly withholding from them. (Not electric scooters, though.)
No one knows for how long Egypt will keep the border open. So now would be the time to organize an emergency airlift of supplies to Cairo, right?
Where is Free Gaza? Where is IHH? Where is Viva Palestina? Where is the European Campaign to End the Siege of Gaza? Where is Tikkun? Where are all the European NGOs dedicated to helping poor Gazans? Where are the Facebook groups and Twitter topics that should be popping up to organize the golden opportunity to show the world how much they care about actual, real Gazan residents?
Hmmm. I guess that if vilifying Israel isn't part of the "aid," it is not worth giving.
