Rafah Crossing: Limiting the Exodus from a Catastrophe
📰 THE STORY: Fox News reports that Israel and Egypt are coordinating a 'test' reopening of the Rafah Crossing, allowing limited movement for 150 people per day, framing it as a step towards 'resuming normal operations' and easing the crisis in Gaza. 🔍 WHAT THEY'RE NOT TELLING YOU: Historical Context: The Rafah Crossing has been under a brutal, 17-year blockade imposed by Israel and Egypt,
suffocating Gaza's 2.3 million residents since 2007. This wasn't a natural disaster; it's a deliberate policy of collective punishment, exacerbated by the ongoing genocide that began in October 2023, which has killed over 40,000 Palestinians. Calls for 'reopening' ignore that it was never truly open for free movement but was systematically choked off for nearly two decades. Double Standard:
Imagine Fox News reporting on a 'test' of a single border crossing to allow 150 people a day to flee a genocide in Ukraine, applauding Russia and Poland for their 'coordination.' The very notion is absurd. Yet, for Palestinians, this microscopic concession is presented as progress, completely depoliticizing the systematic ethnic cleansing and immiseration that necessitated any 'crossing' at all.
The U.S. and its allies would launch global crusades for far less at other borders, but here, they enable the blockade and the violence that makes a 'test' crossing necessary. Follow the Money: Egypt's role in maintaining the blockade is directly linked to the $1.3 billion in annual military aid it receives from the United States. This aid, a staple since the Camp David Accords, incentivizes