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Egypt moves to close Gaza border

RAFAH (Egypt): Egyptian forces moved to close their breached border with the Gaza Strip by stopping vehicle traffic on Sunday and further tightening their security cordon around the small frontier town of Rafah in effort to contain Palestinians crossing freely into Egypt for the fifth day in a row.

One of the gaps carved into the border wall had been blocked with piles of sand and border police carrying electric cattle prods stopped cars with Palestinian plates from entering Egypt at other openings and Egyptians cars from crossing into Gaza. Pedestrians, however, continued to move back and forth freely.

“Egypt will take necessary actions and measures to control the border in Gaza soon,” said Egyptian Foreign Minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit, following a meeting in Cairo with Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad.

There was little left to buy in the muddy streets of the divided border town of Rafah, however, and a chill drizzle kept people huddled under the awnings of the handful of open stores.

Gasoline vendors, however, were still filling jerry cans to be taken back to the fuel-starved Gaza Strip.

“I can afford to get wet, but I can’t afford to go hungry,” said Gazan Adel Abdullah Moussa, dripping wet in the rain and carrying a yellow gas can in one hand and his year-old baby in the other.

Outside Rafah, police tightened their cordon and increased their checkpoints to stop Palestinians from entering the rest of Egypt and in the nearby town of El-Arish, security forces approached Palestinians on the streets and ordered them home.

Palestinians who had managed to sneak into El-Arish said that after a four-day purchasing spree, people would now no longer sell them anything or give them a place to stay the night, apparently under orders from security.

Leaders in the region are scrabbling to decide what to do about last Wednesday’s dramatic opening of the border between Egypt and Gaza and subsequent flood of Palestinians out of their besieged territory to buy food, fuel and consumer products. — AP

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