Egyptian siege continues - only two groups visited Gaza in July

Palestine Today reports that there has been a sharp drop in outside parties visiting Gaza over the past month, with only two delegations allowed into the Hamas-ruled territory during July.

In contrast, some 27 groups visited in June and 20 in May.

Officials said that this is because of much stricter Egyptian rules allowing people to cross the Rafah crossing.

According to Aladdin Batta of Hamas' ministry of foreign affairs, the lack of visitors hurt the education and medical sectors.

I still have not seen anyone referring to Egypt's near-total isolation of Gaza as being a "siege" or a "blockade."

Meanwhile, Israel isn't only allowing medical patients and their families to come into Israel from Gaza, but also some families to visit relatives in the West Bank:

Many other Gazans cross into Israel to visit relatives living in Judea and Samaria. Each month, IDF officials help more than 3,000 Palestinians pass through the crossing to visit their families. This month, as Palestinian Muslims observe the holiday of Ramadan, higher numbers of travelers are visiting Israel to celebrate the holiday with family members.