Category: Blog

I received the following SMS…

Egyptian security teargassed Palestinians and unleashed the dogs. Pals demolished part of the border with tractors and shot dead at least 2 dogs. Egyptian soldiers completely withdrew leaving Salahedin gate completely open loose. At least 3 Egyptian soldiers wounded.

UPDATE: Here’s a report from Al-Jazeera…

Egyptian guards with riot shields have formed human chains along the Egypt-Gaza border, but were unable to stop hundreds of Palestinians from rushing into Egypt after a bulldozer wrecked another section of fence along the frontier.
Men in black clothing, some of them masked, stood atop the bulldozer as it knocked down a concrete slab on Friday under the watchful eyes of Egyptian forces on the other side who shot in the air in an attempt to hinder the flow of Gazans into Egypt.
Thousands of Palestinians, many of them carrying empty fuel canisters, managed to push through several openings despite the presence of the Egyptians deployed nine rows deep in some places.
At one point, guards aimed a water cannon above the heads of people, not at them, to keep them back.
Cranes were positioned next to the border, lifting crates of supplies over into Gaza.
Egyptian forces took up positions a few steps into Palestinian territory, using shields to protect themselves from some Gazans who climbed atop car roofs and threw stones at them.
Violence erupted at the Rafah border after Cairo announced it would close the crossing between Gaza and Egypt.
Al Jazeera correspondent David Chater said the Egyptian government had ordered guards to close the Rafah border by 13:00 GMT on Friday.
Stones were hurled at Egyptian guards by Palestinians after they raised batons and shields and formed a human wall close to one of three crossings.
Witnesses said guards then beat some Palestinians with clubs and fired several shots in the air.
Human wall
The move has triggered fears among Palestinians, who have been flocking into Egypt for three days for essential supplies following Israel’s blockade of the Gaza Strip, that their access to Egypt was about to be closed.
Al Jazeera’s Amr El-Kahky said: “Security forces aim to seal two of the three crossings … one will stay open, but will direct one way traffic – out of Egypt.
“Tension seems to be rising … because the prospect of the borders closing again, and the Palestinians going back into the so-called prison that is Gaza, is very frightening for them.”
He said: “The government took heavy criticism from the West over the border opening.
“The United States congress has already suspended $100 million of aid to Egypt due to the border breach.”
Continued pressure
David Chater, reporting from Jerusalem, said he believed the closure was a result of Washington putting pressure on Egypt.
He said: “Hosni Mubarak [the president], says that the crossing will be closed today.
“He has come under pressure as to how he dealt with this situation, and I think that the attempt to push the Palestinians back into Gaza is a direct response to US pressure in particular.