JERUSALEM – Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz ordered the army Wednesday to prevent a North African aid convoy from entering the besieged Gaza Strip.
A statement from his office said Katz instructed the army to block the entry of “jihadist protesters” from entering Gaza from Egypt.
“I expect the Egyptian authorities to prevent them from reaching the Egypt-Israel border and not allow them to carry out provocations and try to enter Gaza,” he added.
Later, Egypt said that all foreign delegations seeking to visit the border area near Gaza, including the city of Arish and the Rafah crossing, must obtain “prior approval” through official channels.
It did not clarify whether the convoy had obtained the required approvals or not.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry stressed that “no visit requests outside the established framework would be considered,” highlighting the need to safeguard visiting delegations given the situation along the Gaza border.
Egypt also reiterated that all foreign nationals must comply with local entry laws, including obtaining the necessary visas or permits in advance.
The convoy of more than 1,000 activists from North African countries, consisting of 12 buses and 100 private cars, set off from Tunisia on Monday. It is expected to reach Egypt on Thursday before arriving in the city of Rafah near the border with Gaza.
The Israeli army, rejecting international calls for a ceasefire, has pursued a brutal offensive against Gaza since October 2023, killing over 55,100 Palestinians, most of them women and children.
As Israel has continued to close all Gaza’s border crossings to humanitarian aid since early March, aid agencies have warned about the risk of famine among Gaza’s 2.4 million inhabitants.
ANADOLU
