Regulations for Visiting the Border Area Adjacent to the Gaza Strip

alhadath – cairo

The Arab Republic of Egypt welcomes the international and regional positions, both official and popular, that support Palestinian rights and reject Israel’s blockade, starvation, and blatant and systematic violations against the Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip. In this regard, Egypt affirms its continued efforts at all levels to end the aggression against the Strip and the humanitarian catastrophe that has befallen over 2 million Palestinians.

In this context, and in light of the recent requests and inquiries concerning visits by foreign delegations to the border area adjacent to Gaza (the city of El-Arish and the Rafah border crossing) to express support for Palestinian rights, Egypt underscores the necessity of obtaining prior approvals to carry out those visits. Egypt affirms that the only means by which the Egyptian authorities will continue to consider these requests is through adherence to the regulatory procedures and mechanism in place since the beginning of the war on Gaza. This includes submitting an official request either to the Egyptian embassies abroad or through foreign embassies in Cairo and representatives of organizations to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. It is noted that numerous visits have previously been arranged for foreign delegations, whether governmental or from non-governmental human rights organizations.

Egypt stresses the importance of adhering to these established regulatory measures to ensure the safety of visiting delegations due to the sensitive security conditions in this border area since the onset of the crisis in Gaza. Egypt affirms, in this regard, that no requests or invitations will be considered or responded to if submitted outside the framework specified by the regulatory provisions and the established mechanism in this matter.

Egypt also underscores the importance of citizens of all countries adhering to the laws and regulations governing entry into Egyptian territory, including the requirement to obtain visas or prior permits.

Egypt reiterates its steadfast position in supporting the Palestinian people’s resilience on their land and rejecting Israel’s flagrant violations of international law and international humanitarian law. Egypt further stresses the importance of exerting pressure on Israel to lift the blockade on the Gaza Strip and allow humanitarian access through all Israeli routes and crossings into the Strip.