Rafah border crossing with Gaza opens – DW – 10/21/2023

Israeli authorities on Saturday urged citizens to leave neighboring Arab countries of Egypt and Jordan immediately.

Israel’s Foreign Ministry published the travel advice issued by the country’s National Security Council.

“Israel’s National Security Council raises its travel warnings for Egypt (including Sinai) and Jordan to level 4 (high threat): recommendation not to travel to these countries and for those staying there to leave… as soon as possible,” it said in a statement.

The notice comes days after Israel recalled its diplomats from Turkey as a security precaution following an earlier request for its citizens to leave as well.

Humanitarian aid started crossing into Gaza on Saturday from the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.

A convoy of trucks was seen moving towards the crossing on Egyptian television. The crossing had been closed since the October 7 terror attack launched by the Hamas militant group.

More than 200 trucks carrying roughly 3,000 tons of aid had been positioned near the crossing for days before heading into Gaza.

The Palestinian territory has been sealed off and has been running low on medicine and fuel for emergency generators amid a power blackout.

US diplomats in Israel said that the US embassy had received information that the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt would open at 10:00 a.m. local time (0700 UTC).

The embassy said that it anticipated “many people would attempt to cross should the border open,” and warned US citizens attempting to leave Gaza to “expect a potentially chaotic and disorderly environment.”

“If the border is opened, we do not know how long it will remain open for foreign citizens to depart,” they said in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter.

In a statement on their website, the US embassy also warned that the security environment was “unpredictable” and personal safety should be considered before attempting to cross.

Israel sealed off the Gaza Strip and began striking Hamas targets after the militant group launched a terror attack on southern Israel on October 7. The blockade has led to much-needed aid piling up on the Egyptian side.

On Friday, Egypt said the crossing was opened from their side. However, there has been no movement of humanitarian aid as of early Saturday.

Israel to let aid into Gaza but bombing continues

To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video

Thousands of people took to the streets of Australia’s biggest city on Saturday in support of Palestinians amid the ongoing conflict.

The organizer of Saturday’s march, the Palestine Action Group, said around 15,000 people attended the Sydney protest.

Palestine Action Group spokesperson Amal Naser said the march had been peaceful.

This corroborated by local authorities saying no arrests had been made, according to a Reuters report.

The organizers of the rally managed to get last-minute approval from city authorities for the protest to go ahead.

Earlier this week, a group of protesters chanted anti-semitic slogans outside the Sydney Opera House.

Israel is amassing troops outside Gaza and has been bombing the area since the Hamas Islamist militant group launched a terror attack on southern Israel two weeks ago.

US President Joe Biden spoke with the two American citizens released after being held hostage by Hamas.

“I let them know that their government will fully support them as they recover and heal,” he wrote on X, previously known as Twitter. 

Biden added that he and his wife Jill will continue holding close in their hearts “all the families of unaccounted for Americans.”

The US Embassy in Israel also reported about the talk between Biden and the two Americans. “We will continue to do everything we can to unite all hostages with their loved ones,” the embassy wrote on X.

According to US Secretary of State Antony Blinken, 10 Americans remain missing and some are being held captive by Hamas militants.

Hamas’ October 7 terror attack on Israel aimed to disrupt a potential normalization of ties between Israel and Saudi Arabia, US President Joe Biden said.

Saudi Arabia, a Middle East powerhouse and home to Islam’s two holiest shrines, gave its blessing to Gulf neighbors United Arab Emirates and Bahrain establishing relations with Israel in 2020 under the previous US administration of Donald Trump.

Riyadh has not followed suit, saying Palestinian statehood goals should be addressed first.

“One of the reasons Hamas moved on Israel … they knew that I was about to sit down with the Saudis,” Biden said at a campaign fundraising event.

The potential normalization of relations with Saudi Arabia and other Arab states was a top priority for US Secretary of State Antony Blinken during his June trip to Riyadh, although he acknowledged no progress should be expected imminently.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu released a statement after two hostages were released by Hamas.  

 “Two of our kidnapped are home,” he wrote on X, previously known as Twitter.

Netanyahu said that Israelis will not relent in their effort to return all of those kidnapped and the missing. “At the same time, we continue to fight till victory,” he added.

Hamas on Friday said it released two American women, Judith and Natalie Raanan, who were held hostage. 

Egypt is holding a summit on the Gaza crisis on Saturday amid growing fears of a wider Middle East war.

The hastily convened Cairo Peace Summit will bring several Arab and European heads of state and government together alongside foreign ministers — including Germany’s top diplomat Annalena Baerbock.

But without an Israeli or US representative planning to attend, expectations of what the summit can achieve have been dampened.

Egypt has been trying to channel humanitarian relief to Gaza through the Rafah crossing, the strip’s only access point not controlled by Israel, but aid has piled up on the Egyptian side.

Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sissi, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Jordanian King Abdullah have announced plans to attend. China and Russia will also be represented.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, European Council President Charles Michel and European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell will join the summit.

Arab countries have voiced anger at Israel’s unprecedented bombardment and siege of Gaza following the October 7 terror attack by the Islamist militant group Hamas on Israel.

El-Sissi has expressed concern that any forced displacement of Palestinians into Egypt’s Sinai could turn the peninsula into a base for attacks against Israel.

Several countries, including Germany, have warned of the risks of the Gaza crisis sparking a wider regional conflict.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken confirmed that two American hostages released by militant group Hamas for “humanitarian reasons” will be met by US Embassy officials in Israel.

Hamas on Friday said it released two American women, Judith and Natalie Raanan, who were held hostage. Their release was confirmed by Israel. 

Blinken confirmed that 10 Americans remain missing and that some are being held captive by Hamas militants.

“There are still 10 additional Americans who remain unaccounted for in this conflict,” he told a White House press conference. “We know that some of them are being held hostage by Hamas, along with an estimated 200 other hostages held in Gaza.”

He called for the “immediate and unconditional release” of all hostages.

When asked whether Hamas are following the rules of war in Gaza, Blinken said there will be plenty of time to assess how their operations have been conducted.

ms, mm/wd (AP, AFP, Reuters, dpa)