A dispute has arisen between Israel and Egypt regarding the Rafah border crossing, with both sides attributing blame for its ongoing closure amidst the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

 

Palestinians are gathering their possessions as they make arrangements to leave Rafah in southern Gaza.

Israeli forces have taken control of the Gaza side of the crossing. On Tuesday Israel's Foreign Minister Israel Katz said he had told the UK and Germany about "the need to persuade Egypt to reopen" the crossing. But Egypt says it is Israel's military operations in the area which are preventing aid from passing through.

Cindy McCain, leader of the UN food agency, remarked in early May that she suspected a "full-blown famine" was unfolding in northern Gaza, gradually spreading southward. According to the latest report from Cogat, the Israeli military agency responsible for coordinating aid delivery in Gaza, only 64 aid trucks entered Gaza on Sunday, marking a notable decrease compared to the daily average of trucks that entered in April. Cairo said Israel was trying to shift the blame for blocked aid. Mr Katz said the Palestinian armed group Hamas, which attacked southern Israel on 7 October last year, sparking the current war, could no longer "control the Rafah crossing", citing security concerns over which Israel "will not compromise". "The world places the responsibility for the humanitarian situation on Israel, but the key to preventing a humanitarian crisis in Gaza is now in the hands of our Egyptian friends," Mr Katz wrote on X. Egypt's Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry quickly responded to the comments with a statement that said Israel was responsible for the humanitarian crisis in Gaza and that the Israeli military's actions in the Rafah area were blocking aid. The country has been one of the mediators in stalled ceasefire talks, but its relationship with Israel has been strained since Israel seized the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing on 7 May. Almost 450,000 Palestinians have fled from Rafah over the past week after the Israeli military moved into the area, the UN says. Israeli tanks are reportedly pushing deeper into Rafah city, which is to the north of the border crossing.

On Sunday the UN said it hoped a newly opened crossing from Israel to northern Gaza would lead to a sustainable flow of aid into the north of the territory.

On Monday some Israeli protesters blocked aid trucks destined for Gaza, throwing food packages onto the road and ripping bags of grain open in the occupied West Bank

Also on Sunday Egypt said it would intervene in support of South Africa's case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on the basis of Israel's expanded military activity in Gaza and the impact it was having on civilians.

On Friday South Africa asked the ICJ to order Israel to pull out of Rafah as an additional emergency measure in the case, which accuses Israel of acts of genocide.

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Israel has said it will proceed with planned military operations in Rafah despite the US and other allies warning that a ground offensive could lead to mass civilian casualties.

The Israeli military has told people in Rafah to move to al-Mawasi - a narrow coastal area which Israel calls an "expanded humanitarian zone" - and Khan Younis, which is largely in ruins after a previous Israeli military incursion there

Israel launched a military campaign in Gaza after Hamas's attack on southern Israel on 7 October, during which about 1,200 people were killed and 252 others were taken hostage, according to Israeli authorities.

More than 34,900 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.

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