Egypt News: Passport holders stranded in Rafah plead with authorities to be allowed home
Egyptians stranded in Gaza plead for return amid war
As the war between Israel and Hamas rages on, dozens of Egyptians who live in the Gaza Strip are trapped in the besieged enclave, unable to return to their homeland.
They have been waiting for weeks at the Rafah crossing, the only gateway to Egypt, hoping for a chance to cross the border and escape the violence.
But they say they have been ignored by the Egyptian authorities, who have prioritized Palestinian passport holders over Egyptian ones.
Hossam el-Dein Hafez, an Egyptian who works in Gaza, said he has been sleeping on a chair outside the terminal for 25 days.
“We are originally Egyptians and hold Egyptian passports. We were born in Egypt. Why do they treat us in this way? We want to return to our country to look after our work, and to return to our homeland,” he said.
Alana Omar, another Egyptian who lives with her mother and sister in Gaza, said they have been suffering from the lack of medicine and food.
“My mother is an old lady. She is sick and spent one month in her bed, while we don’t know what to do to help her. We don’t have money to bring her medicine. Nobody helps us,” she said.
She said her brother in Egypt has been trying to contact the embassy every day, but to no avail.
“Since the war began, we were registered at the embassy. We want to travel. We were born there and never lived through wars here,” she said.
The war in Gaza, which started on Oct. 7 after Hamas launched a surprise attack that killed some 1,200 Israelis and captured around 240 others, has claimed more than 20,900 Palestinian lives, according to the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza.
Israel has been carrying out relentless airstrikes and shelling across the territory, targeting Hamas militants and infrastructure, but also causing widespread civilian casualties and destruction.
Egypt, which has mediated several ceasefires between Israel and Hamas in the past, has been trying to broker a truce, but the efforts have so far failed to end the bloodshed.