With Rafah crossing closed by Israel, Gazans have no way out
JERUSALEM — Palestinians in Gaza already had little chance of escaping the war. Then came Israel’s capture of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt last month, sealing off the last remaining exit. Israel had permitted tens of thousands of Gazans to leave through Rafah over the past eight months. Some were critically sick or wounded. Others went through an Egyptian company, which facilitated departures for a hefty fee. Foreign countries worked to evacuate dual citizens and their relatives. The United States, Egypt and Israel are in talks to reopen the crossing — also vital for aid deliveries to the Strip — though little progress has been made. The Israeli rights group Gisha said it successfully lobbied for 18 Palestinian citizens of Israel and residents of Jerusalem to leave Gaza in late May through Kerem Shalom, another southern crossing. But Israel’s offensive in Rafah, aimed at eliminating Hamas’s last battalions, has dashed any hope of escape for the rest of Gaza’s ill and injured civilians, as the health system collapses and the U.N. warns that more …
