Egyptian authorities decided on Sunday to reopen the Rafah crossing at the Egyptian border with the Palestinian territory of the Gaza Strip for two days, the official MENA news agency reported.
The border crossing will be open on July 1-2 to allow Palestinian patients and those carrying residence visas to cross into Egypt, Palestinian Ambassador to Egypt Nabil Amr was quoted as saying.
On June 18, one day before a truce between Israel and Hamas-led Palestinian militant groups came into effect, Egypt temporarily reopened the Rafah crossing to allow stranded Palestinians at the Egyptian side to return to the Hamas-controlled enclave.
The Rafah crossing, the only Gaza passage to the outside world that bypasses Israel, has been closed since last June when Hamas took over Gaza by force and Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas' forces withdrew alongside European Union (EU) monitors.
Egypt maintained the closure of the crossing which, according to a U.S.-brokered agreement, can not be open without the presence of the EU monitors and the Palestinian Presidential Guard forces.
In some occasions, Egypt opened the crossing for patients and some Hamas leaders who leave for talks in Cairo.
Source:Xinhua
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