Statement from Hakan Fidan on the Rafah Border Crossing

Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan conducted inspections at the Rafah Border Crossing and El-Arish Port during his official visit to Egypt. During the visit, which took place at the invitation of Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty, Fidan made statements to members of the press at the Rafah Border Crossing.

Fidan stated that the Rafah Border Crossing is currently closed to traffic and that the other side of the border has been completely destroyed. For this reason, he noted that trucks cannot exit from Rafah and are being redirected to Kerem Shalom. He emphasized that only about 25 trucks per day are able to pass from Kerem Shalom into Gaza. Fidan said that this situation is extremely insufficient.

In his statement at the Rafah Border Crossing, Fidan noted the following:

“By stopping by El-Arish Port, we had the opportunity to observe how aid is brought in and how it is loaded onto trucks. We received a briefing on the work being done at the Rafah Border Crossing. Currently, the Rafah Border Crossing is closed to traffic, and a major humanitarian crisis is unfolding on the other side of the border. Two million people have been displaced, and 40 thousand women and children have lost their lives. There is no medicine, food, or water. Our Palestinian brothers and sisters are struggling with hunger in the open air. If we do not stop this massacre, we will be accomplices as humanity. We must provide all the aid we can and increase the pressure on Israel.”