Egypt closes Gaza crossing for third day in row
Published today (updated) 19/05/2013 12:00
http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=596874

GAZA CITY (Ma’an) -- Egyptian police at Rafah are closing the crossing for a
third day in a row Sudnay after the kidnappings of Egyptian soldiers in the
Sinai, officials said.

They are preventing all Palestinians from traveling through the crossing or
leaving the Gaza Strip, the Gaza interior ministry said Sunday.

The Hamas-run Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Saturday that talks were
underway with Egypt to reopen the crossing.

"The ministry of foreign affairs is holding talks with senior officials in
Egypt to re-open the Rafah crossing and ensure the safe return of people
stranded by the closure," deputy foreign minister Ghazi Hamad told Ma'an.

Maher Abu Sabha, the general director of crossings and borders, said 800
Palestinians were stranded on the Egyptian side of the crossing on Saturday
morning.

The number was expected to reach 1,000 by the end of the day. Most travelers
are waiting in hotels in el-Arish for the crossing to reopen. They include
sick people who had received medical treatment abroad, pilgrims and students
who study abroad.

Gaza's Interior Ministry announced a state of alert along its border with
Egypt on Thursday in case the kidnappers tried to smuggle the Egyptian
servicemen into Gaza.

Early Thursday, gunmen ambushed two minibuses in Wadi al-Akhdar, between
el-Arish and Sheikh Zuweid cities, and kidnapped seven Egyptian servicemen
en route to Cairo for their monthly vacation, Egyptian security officials
told Ma'an.