The Palestinian embassy in Cairo said the Egyptian authorities would open the Rafah border crossing with Gaza on Friday and Saturday in both directions.

In a brief statement the embassy added that the crossing would be opened for the travel of people with humanitarian cases and stranded passengers.

On Wednesday February 22nd the Egyptian authorities announced it would open the crossing for four days but it was only opened for one day and then closed unexpectedly.

The Rafah crossing has been run by the Palestinian government since last November after the Hamas Movement ceded control of Gaza’s crossings to the Palestinian Authority as part of an Egyptian-brokered reconciliation agreement signed in October 12 in Cairo.

Dozens of Gaza patients staged a sit-in at the crossing on Thursday demanding its immediate opening. The patients who were joined by students and other stranded citizens asked the Egyptian authorities to open the crossing and allow them to pass so as to meet their urgent needs.

The Egyptian authorities intend to open the Rafah border crossing on Saturday and Sunday for the travel of passengers in both directions.
The crossing will be opened for these two days in order to allow the travel of people with humanitarian cases according to the border and crossings authority in the Gaza Strip on Thursday.
The names of the passengers who will cross into Egypt have been published on the website of the Palestinian interior ministry.
The Egyptian authorities also may reopen the crossing for another four days as of next Wednesday October 19 for the same purpose according to local newspapers in Cairo.
The Rafah crossing is closed permanently by Egypt and only opened for a few days during the year.

GAZA (PIC)– The Palestinian interior ministry on Wednesday evening said the Egyptian authorities would open the Rafah border crossing in both directions on Thursday and Friday after its closure for several months.

For over 100 days the Egyptian authorities had refused to open the crossing for the travel of passengers stranded on both sides.

Middle East News Agency said the Egyptian authorities would open the crossing during these two days for the travel of stranded passengers and people with humanitarian cases.

More than 25000 Palestinians including about 4000 patients from the Gaza Strip have applied for travel through the crossing.