US Pressures Egypt to Reopen Rafah Aid Crossing After It Halts Humanitarian Deliveries

The US is hosting a trilateral meeting between itself, Israel, and Egypt next week to pressure the Egyptian government to reopen the Rafah crossing to humanitarian aid.

Egypt closed the crossing — which is on the border between Egypt and Gaza — on May 7, when the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) took control of its Gaza side. Egypt said it would not reopen the crossing until the Palestinians controlled it again. 

The reason for Egypt’s closure is that it did not want to be perceived as helping the IDF with its military offensive in Rafah, the southernmost Gaza city and the Hamas terror group’s last major stronghold in the Palestinian enclave.

But that has meant no humanitarian aid has been able to get into Gaza from Egypt through the crossing since the closure. On Sunday, Egypt resumed deliveries from the Kerem Shalom crossing it jointly has with Israel.

The US will have a meeting with Israel and Egypt next week to discuss reopening the Rafah crossing, according to Axios. US President Joe Biden reportedly told Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi that if the delivery of aid trucks wasn’t resumed, the US would publicly criticize Egypt for it.

Since the Israel-Hamas war began on Oct. 7 of last year, the US has viewed Egypt as a crucial partner for negotiating hostage and ceasefire deals and the “day after,” when the fighting ends.

But the move to close the Rafah crossing, a key route for humanitarian aid into Gaza, has conflicted with Biden’s goal of increasing the amount of aid given to Palestinian civilians. Biden administration officials have harshly criticized Israel for in their view not doing enough to allow aid to be delivered to the Hamas-ruled enclave, but has not spoken out against Egypt’s actions.

Axios noted that, during a call in the lead-up to next week’s meeting, Sisi agreed to Biden’s request to resume the flow of aid trucks into Gaza through Israel.

When it opens, Israeli troops will leave the crossing, and an international body or, temporarily, Palestinians unaffiliated with Hamas will control it, according to a report in the Times of Israel.

The Egypt-Gaza border has become a significant point of contention since Israel took it over earlier this month. On Monday, Egyptian soldiers opened fire on the IDF, who then returned fire and killed two Egyptian troops. Egypt has, at times, threatened to pull out of its peace agreement with Israel if tensions continue to escalate and if Israel encroaches on Egypt in certain ways.

There have also been significant issues with delivering aid to Palestinians throughout the war. Israeli estimates suggest approximately 60 percent of the aid that has gone into Gaza has been stolen — either by Hamas or other groups and individuals. Oftentimes, that aid is then sold to the population at high prices, making it difficult to impossible for most Gazans to gain access to it. 

According to Ehud Yaari, an expert at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, Hamas has made more than $500 million in profit from selling humanitarian aid since Oct. 7.

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