At the Gates of Gaza, Aid Piles Up in Egypt

Rafah, the border crossing into Gaza that Egypt had promised to open on Friday, is the only crossing into the blockaded Palestinian territory that is not controlled by Israel. MOHAMMED ABED / AFP
Rafah, the border crossing into Gaza that Egypt had promised to open on Friday, is the only crossing into the blockaded Palestinian territory that is not controlled by Israel. MOHAMMED ABED / AFP
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At the Gates of Gaza, Aid Piles Up in Egypt

Rafah, the border crossing into Gaza that Egypt had promised to open on Friday, is the only crossing into the blockaded Palestinian territory that is not controlled by Israel. MOHAMMED ABED / AFP
Rafah, the border crossing into Gaza that Egypt had promised to open on Friday, is the only crossing into the blockaded Palestinian territory that is not controlled by Israel. MOHAMMED ABED / AFP

Food, medicines, water purifiers, hygiene products and blankets: the aid was piling in Egypt's Sinai region at El Arish airport, which even opened an extra landing strip to cope with deliveries.

Rafah, the border crossing into Gaza that Egypt had promised to open on Friday, is a few dozen kilometers to the east, said AFP.

It is the only crossing into the blockaded Palestinian territory that is not controlled by Israel.

On a visit to Cairo, UN chief Antonio Guterres said Thursday that there needed to be "rapid, unimpeded humanitarian access" after dire warnings about the impact of the sustained Israeli blockade.

Guterres said the Rafah crossing and El Arish airport "are not only critical, they are our only hope" and "the lifelines" for the people of Gaza.

Ahmed Ali, head of the Egyptian Red Crescent, told AFP his organization receives "two to three planes of aid a day, chartered by humanitarian agencies or states", who want to send food, water or medical supplies to the 2.4 million Palestinians in Gaza.

As soon as aid is dropped off on the tarmac, the shipments are loaded onto trucks.

Israel, which has imposed a strict blockade on Gaza for 16 years and has declared a "complete siege" after the October 7 attack by the militant group Hamas on its soil, has agreed to allow the passage of aid.

Egyptian state-linked broadcaster Al Qahera News said the Rafah crossing would open on Friday.

But later Egypt said it needed more time to repair the roads that connect its territory to Gaza after four Israeli bombings of the crossing.

'Beyond catastrophic'
In the meantime, pallets loaded with aid are stored in warehouses in El Arish, the capital of North Sinai, said Ali.

As soon as the green light is given, 250 volunteers are ready to transport them to the border.

The UN World Food Program, which has already provided aid to 522,000 people since the start of the hostilities, said it has 951 tons of food at or on the way to Rafah -- enough to feed 488,000 people for one week, a spokesperson said.

On Thursday, an Emirati plane offloaded nine tons of UNICEF aid.

The situation in Gaza is "beyond catastrophic" with stocks almost empty after 13 days of war, said Sara Alzawqari, UNICEF spokeswoman for the Gulf.

"We have distributed nearly all our prepositioned supplies which were inside Gaza and have been working to keep the only functioning desalination plant in the entire Gaza Strip running in much-reduced capacity," she said, as food, water, fuel and power run short after Gaza's only power plant shut down.

'Time is running out'

Hamas militants stormed into Israel from the Gaza Strip on October 7, and killed at least 1,400 people, mostly civilians, who were shot, mutilated or burnt to death on the first day of the raid, according to Israeli officials. Israel says around 1,500 Hamas fighters were killed in clashes before its army regained control of the area under attack.

More than 3,700 Palestinians, mainly civilians, have been killed across Gaza in relentless Israeli bombardments in retaliation for the attacks by the Palestinian group, according to the Hamas health ministry in Gaza.

UN agencies have warned food, water and fuel will soon run out in the besieged Palestinian territory.

"Medical supplies and medicines have also been provided to hospitals, but given the number of injuries, hospital beds and essential medicine -- including anesthetics -- are quickly running out," Alzawqari said.

"Time is running out and the numbers of casualties amongst children are rising," she added.

"We need an immediate humanitarian pause to ensure unhindered and safe access to children in need."

The deal struck by US President Joe Biden with Israel and Egypt will allow in 20 trucks.

The emergency director of the World Health Organization has called it "a drop in the ocean of need".

"It should be 2,000 trucks," Michael Ryan said.

While food, water and fuel are the priority, Alzawqari said UNICEF has slipped boxes of educational game kits into aid shipments, because children need to continue "playing and learning even during emergencies".



Sudan's RSF, Allies Sign Charter for Rival Government

The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
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Sudan's RSF, Allies Sign Charter for Rival Government

The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP
The Sudan war has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's worst hunger and displacement crises - AFP

Sudan's Rapid Support Forces and its allies have agreed to form a parallel government, they said Sunday, despite warnings such a move could further fragment the war-ravaged country.

"The charter has been signed," Najm al-Din Drisa, spokesman of the United Civil Forces, one of the signatories, told AFP.

The parties to the agreement, inked behind closed doors in Nairobi, said the charter establishes a "government of peace and unity" in rebel-controlled areas of the northeast African country.

The move comes nearly two years into a devastating war with the regular army that has uprooted more than 12 million people and caused what the United Nations calls the world's largest hunger and displacement crises.
Among those who agreed to it was a faction of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement-North (SPLM-N), led by Abdelaziz al-Hilu, which controls parts of the South Kordofan and Blue Nile states in the country's south.

Abdel Rahim Daglo, deputy and brother of RSF commander Mohamed Hamdan Daglo -- who was notably absent -- also signed.

The charter, seen by AFP, calls for "a secular, democratic, decentralized state based on freedom, equality, and justice, without bias toward any cultural, ethnic, religious, or regional identity".

It also outlines plans for a "new, unified, professional, national army" with a new military doctrine that "reflects the diversity and plurality characterizing the Sudanese state".

The proposed government aims to end the war, ensure unhindered humanitarian aid and integrate armed groups into a single, national force.

The war, originally triggered by disputes over integrating the RSF into the military, has killed tens of thousands, with both sides accused of atrocities.

Last month, the US determined the RSF had committed genocide in the western region of Darfur.

The conflict has torn the country in two, with the army controlling the north and east and the RSF holding nearly all of Darfur and swathes of the south.

The army is currently on the verge of recapturing the capital Khartoum, after surging through central Sudan and regaining territory this year.

In its alliance with the SPLM-N, the RSF side now controls more of the south and has border access to Libya, Chad, the Central African Republic, South Sudan and Ethiopia.

A spokesman for UN chief Antonio Guterres warned the move could "increase the fragmentation of the country and risk making this crisis even worse".

But the charter's signatories denied any intentions to divide the country.

Alaa El-Din Nuqd, a signatory representing professional unions, said the proposed government would benefit people in RSF-held areas "who have been cut off from essential services".

Nuqd said the charter was a step toward "protecting the dignity" of war-hit civilians.

Analysts say the move is aimed at strengthening the RSF after their recent battlefield setbacks.

Sudanese political analyst Kholood Khair said the RSF's ultimate goals were to acquire an air force, facilitate humanitarian aid to areas under its control and secure a stronger negotiation position.

"They want to go into mediations as a government, not a militia," she told AFP.

However, any arms sales to the potential government would still be in violation of a Darfur embargo which the United Nations has recommended expanding to cover all of Sudan.