The Egyptian Red Crescent delivered humanitarian aid to Gaza through the Rafah crossing on the morning of 2 December, after the Israeli military banned humanitarian aid from passing through Rafah on 1 December as it resumed its assault on the Strip, according to the Palestine Red Crescent Society (PRCS).
The Palestine Red Crescent crews have now received aid trucks through the Rafah crossing from our partners in the @EG_Red_Crescent.#Gaza#HumantarianAid pic.twitter.com/fiYv0bOp8B
— PRCS (@PalestineRCS) December 2, 2023
Israel had told organizations operating at the Rafah crossing “that the entry of aid trucks from the Egyptian side to the #Gaza Strip is prohibited, starting from today until further notice,” PRCS said in a post on X on 1 December.
Trucks had to be cleared from the Palestinian side of the crossing as soon as possible, according to PRCS.
The prohibition on aid, in practice, is a warning that any aid entering from Egypt may be targeted by Israeli forces. Egypt maintains that the border with Gaza is open, but that for aid trucks to go through, there need to be guarantees that they will not be targeted.
The Israeli military resumed its assault after a seven-day truce brought brief respite to wounded and exhausted Palestinians amid increasingly dire humanitarian conditions.
From the morning the truce broke down on 1 December until 8 p.m. in the evening, Israel killed 184 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to the Palestinian Ministry of Health in Gaza.
The Israeli military stated that it had recommenced its operations, citing Hamas’ rocket attacks as a violation of the truce, in a post on X on 1 December. Sources at the IDF told the BBC that another reason for the hostilities was that Hamas failed to fulfill its agreement to release all women and children captives as per their initial commitment.
Hamas, on its part, blamed the termination of the truce on Israel, accusing it of rejecting all proposals to release additional hostages held by militants in the enclave.
The truce saw Hamas release 110 captives, while Israel released 240 Palestinian captives held in Israeli prisons.
THE CONFLICT SO FAR
After a surprise attack conducted on 7 October by Hamas on a number of southern Israeli towns, which resulted in the deaths of an estimated 1,200 people and more than 220 being taken hostage by Hamas, Israel launched a retaliatory bombing campaign against what it describes as ‘terrorist targets’ in the Gaza Strip.
At least 14,500 Palestinians have been killed in the Gaza Strip — including at least 5,500 children — and over 32,000 others injured. Meanwhile, at least 225 Palestinians have been killed in the West Bank and more than 2,700 injured. The death toll is no longer being regularly updated due to the collapse of the enclave’s health system.
Israel and Hamas reached an agreement on 22 November, announcing a four-day cessation of hostilities to facilitate the release of 50 hostages held in Gaza, 150 Palestinians imprisoned in Israel, and the entry of humanitarian aid. The truce began on 24 November.
During an event in support of Palestine at Cairo International Stadium, President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi stressed that the forced relocation of Palestinians is a “red line” for Egypt, and will not be accepted.
The priority of the Egyptian government since the beginning of the conflict has been deescalation and the securing of a path for aid to enter the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing.
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