Mizan Center urges Abbas, international community to work on opening Rafah crossing to save stranded Palestinians

[ 23/07/2007 - 03:13 PM ]

GAZA, (PIC)--

Al-Mizan Center for Human Rights renewed the call upon PA chief Mahmoud Abbas and the international community, especially the signatories to the fourth Geneva convention, to work urgently on opening the Rafah crossing to in order to put an end to the suffering of thousands of Palestinian civilians, who are subjected to mass punishment.

The center charged that the IOA is persisting in imposing mass punishment on civilians in the Gaza Strip, and on ignoring the big suffering of more than 6,000 Palestinians having been stuck at the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing for almost a month and a half.

Those people left the Gaza Strip for different purposes such as medical treatment, trade, education and jobs; on the other side, there are also hundreds, who need to leave the Strip itself for the same purposes, and are stuck at the crossing, Mizan explained in a statement received by the PIC.

The Rafah terminal has been sealed off since June 10, 2007 and was opened for only once on June 18, 2007 to allow 180 Palestinians into the Strip without the presence of European monitors.

The center expressed belief that there is no real obstacle to operating the crossing on exceptional basis for several days to allow the entry of children, patients, the elderly and other civilians into the Strip, except for IOA, which wants to inflict mass punishment against the Palestinian civilians.

The center renewed its rejection of involving civilians in the crossfire of the ongoing political conflict in the region, highlighting that the conventions of the United Nations as well as the international law of human rights affirms the need to respect the inherent human dignity.

PA official: No alternative to opening Rafah terminal

[ 23/07/2007 - 09:27 AM ]

GAZA, (PIC)--

The legitimate PA caretaker government under premier Ismail Haneyya has reiterated its firm stand on the necessity to open the Rafah terminal before thousands of Palestinian citizens stranded at the Egyptian side for nearly two months.

Ala Al-Deen Al-A’araj, the economy advisor of Haneyya, affirmed that the PA government rejects any alternative to the Rafah crossing point, stressing that the only solution to end the ordeal of those stranded citizens is by opening the terminal before them.

Rafah crossing point is supposed to be a solely Palestinian-Egyptian crossing point, but former PA officials, particularly Fatah MP Mohammed Dahalan signed a disgraceful deal with the Israelis in which he placed that terminal under indirect Israeli control.

Hamas Movement and the PA caretaker government were in continuous contact with the Egyptian officials to open the terminal amidst reports revealing that the Israeli occupation government rejected an Egyptian request to open the gate for 48 hours for special cases to return back home.

Egypt suggested two alternatives to Hamas, first that the stranded Palestinians be transported by air from Cairo to Amman before they could proceed to the West Bank and enter the Gaza Strip through the Israeli-controlled Beit Hanon crossing point.

The second alternative to allow the stranded Palestinians enter through the Egyptian-Israeli Oja crossing point leading to the Negev region before they could enter Gaza Strip through Beit Hanon.

Hamas rejected both alternatives on fears that the Rafah terminal could be permanently sealed off, the result of which will turn Gaza Strip into real a big jail for Gazans.

Many of the stranded Palestinians were wounded resistance activist who could be arrested by the IOF troops if they passed through an Israeli-controlled exit.

Last week, Hebrew media sources unveiled a secret document affirming that the terminal was closed based on a request made by PA chief Mahmoud Abbas to Egypt and Israel urging them to keep the terminal sealed off as a punishment for Hamas, and to tighten the siege on it. Abbas denied the report.

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