Ref: 47/2011

The Palestinian Center for Human Rights (PCHR) welcomes the
decision of the Egyptian authorities to open all land and air passages for
Palestinians to and from the Gaza Strip. This decision reflects the spirit of revolution and change in Egypt, shows
Egypt’s major role in supporting the Palestinian people, and illustrates the respectable
efforts made by the Egyptian leadership to achieve Palestinian national
reconciliation.
 

On Thursday 26 May 2011, the Egyptian al-Ahram Daily reported that beginning
Saturday, 28 May 2011, Egyptian authorities will increase the hours of
operation at Rafah International Crossing Point from 09:00 to 17:00 daily,
excluding Fridays and official holidays. They also announced that they would
apply the procedures regulating the entry of Palestinians to Egypt that were in
effect prior to 2007. Under these
procedures the following categories are exempted from applying for entry visas:

· All
Palestinian women.

· Male
Palestinian aged below 18 and above 40.

· Patients
who have medical transfers.

· Children
who accompany their parents, who are already exempted from applying for visas. 

· Palestinian
families passing via Egyptian territory to travel to and from the Gaza Strip,
provided that they have their Palestinian passports, identity cards, and visas
to enter a country of destination. 

While it reiterates welcoming these facilitations, PCHR emphasizes
the following:

1. The newly
declared policy is related to the movement of persons only and do not include
commercial transactions. These procedures will not to ease the suffering of the
Palestinian civilian population or change the economic situation caused by the strict
closure imposed on the Gaza Strip.

2. The
Gaza Strip is still an occupied territory controlled by Israeli occupation
forces. 

3. The
State of Israel, as an occupying power according to international law, is
responsible for the welfare of the civilian population of the Gaza Strip.

4. The newly
declared Egyptian policy, which we highly appreciate, is not an alternative to
the core issue, which is lifting the Israeli closure imposed on the Gaza Strip,
opening crossings for commercial transactions and allowing the freedom of
movement of persons, including the movement between the Gaza Strip and the West
Bank, through the outlets that are controlled by the Israeli occupation forces.

5. The new
Egyptian policy does not exempt the international community of their
responsibilities to exert pressure on Israel to lift the closure and comply
with international law.