Why Hasn’t Israel Unilaterally Opened All Gaza Border Crossings For All Americans- Even If Hamas Refuses, Israel Should Offer. Israel Wants U.S. To Stand With It. Israel Should Stand With U.S.
State Of Israel Should Unilaterally Make Available All Gaza Border Crossings For Individuals Subject To United States Jurisdiction.
Even If Hamas Or The Government Of Egypt Refuse To Authorize The Departures, State Of Israel Should Be Proactive.
State Of Israel Wants The United States To Stand With It… Then State Of Israel Should Stand With The United States.
Why Hasn’t Prime Minister Netanyahu Offered To Open The Borders For Individuals Subject To United States Jurisdiction?
Worse, Why Have United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken And United States Senator Charles Schumer (D- New York), Who Both Identify As Jewish, Have Not Publicly Demanded The Access?
Approximately Six Hundred Palestinian-Americans In Gaza. Fifteen Palestinians and three employees of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) with their immediate families.
The Hill (Washington DC- 15 October 2023): National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan addresses reporters during the daily briefing at the White House on Thursday, November 10, 2022. National security adviser Jake Sullivan said Sunday that he knows of no American citizens who have been able to get out of Gaza as Israel prepares to mount a ground offensive in the region following a week of heavy bombardment by air. “So far, we have not been able to get American citizens through the border crossing and I’m not aware of anyone else being able to get out at this time, though I cannot fully confirm that because it’s a dynamic situation,” Sullivan told NBC’s Kristen Welker on “Meet the Press.”
“Like I said, we’re trying to create the circumstances where American citizens are in Gaza and are looking to lead to get into Egypt and ultimately to the United States or elsewhere, that they are able to so. We’re working on that as we speak,” he added.
Israel ordered 1 million people on Friday in Gaza to evacuate ahead of a possible ground operation — just days after militant group Hamas launched an unprecedented, deadly attack on the nation more than a week ago. The United Nations and humanitarian groups warned that trying to move such a large number of people with a 24-hour deadline would be disastrous. The U.S. is trying to move Palestinian Americans through the Rafah crossing, which connects with northeast Egypt, according to several media reports. Sullivan did not confirm or deny whether the U.S. asked Israel to delay its ground operation so that civilians could flee.
“First, I’m not going to get into our private conversations with the Israelis, but we are not interfering in their military planning or trying to give them instructions or requests specific to their military planning,” he said. Sullivan also could not confirm how many Americans, if any, have been killed inside Gaza so far, again reiterating that they are working on getting Americans out of the region through a passage in a border crossing with Egypt. “It has been difficult to execute that operation to facilitate their passage out. We are continuing to work that, and President Biden has put a team on it around the clock because it’s a high priority for us to be able to get American citizens out of Gaza,” he said.
The seven border crossings of Gaza (Al Jazeera- 15 October 2022)
The Gaza Strip is surrounded by seven crossings that were designated for the movement of people and goods into and out of the Strip. Not all of them are still in use. After Israel imposed the blockade in 2007, all crossings were shut down except for the Rafah and Beit Hanoun crossings, which were designated for the movement of people, and the Karem Abu Salem crossing, which was designated for the transport of goods.
Israel controls Beit Hanoun (also known to Israelis as Erez) and Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom), while Egypt controls Rafah. This means that crossings can be closed at any time by the Israelis or the Egyptians, leaving Gazan Palestinians stranded. The Rafah crossing is the only way to cross between Egypt and Gaza, and therefore serves as a vital link between Gaza and the rest of the Arab world, especially after Israeli forces destroyed Yasser Arafat International Airport, the only Palestinian-operated airport, in 2001. The Rafah crossing does not allow Palestinians from the occupied West Bank to enter Gaza. Additionally, Israel does not allow people to return to Gaza via the Beit Hanoun crossing if they have left via Rafah. This puts Palestinians in Gaza in a difficult situation – if they leave through Rafah and it then closes, they may not be able to re-enter.
Gaza City – Despite Israel’s disengagement from the Gaza Strip in 2005, it still fully controls entry and exit from Gaza by land, air and sea, as well as Gaza’s civil population registry, telecommunications networks, and many other aspects of daily life and infrastructure. A crippling blockade began in June 2007, after Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip, with a series of restrictions on goods, fuel and other basic elements, as well as a tightening of travel into and out of the Gaza Strip. Israel argues that the restrictions and the closures of several of the crossings are necessary for security purposes, pointing to attacks that have previously taken place in or near crossings.
The Rafah crossing: The Rafah crossing is the only way to cross between Egypt and Gaza, and therefore serves as a vital link between Gaza and the rest of the Arab world, especially after Israeli forces destroyed Yasser Arafat International Airport, the only Palestinian-operated airport, in 2001. Restrictions at the crossing imposed by the Egyptian authorities are currently not as strict as they have been in the past, but limits on the number and type of people allowed to travel continue. This has forced many Palestinians in Gaza to pay expensive and unofficial “coordination fees” to the Egyptian side to be able to leave during the limited days the crossing is open.
The Beit Hanoun (Erez) crossing: The Beit Hanoun crossing is located in the north of the Gaza Strip and is under full Israeli control. It is the only border crossing that allows Palestinians in Gaza to travel to the occupied West Bank without passing through Egypt or Jordan, and is controlled by the Israeli army. It is notoriously difficult for Palestinians to enter and exit Gaza via Beit Hanoun – no one crosses the border without being granted permission by Israel and submitting to lengthy security checks. Permits to cross are only given to limited categories of people, such as medical patients and their companions, trader-permit holders, and other exceptional humanitarian cases. The permit processing times for Beit Hanoun are known to be extremely long. It has been known for people seeking medical treatment outside of Gaza to wait for up to 50 working days for a permit, regardless of when their medical appointment is. It is also very common for Israeli authorities to not respond to permit applications, even when Palestinians in Gaza meet the travel permit criteria. Israeli rejections of permits are explained as being for security reasons, with no further explanation given.
The Karem Abu Salem (Kerem Shalom) crossing: Karem Abu Salem is located near the point where the borders between Egypt, Gaza and Israel meet, and operates occasionally as an alternative to the Rafah crossing. However, it is mainly used for the movement of trade between the Gaza Strip and Israel. For more than a decade, the crossing has been Gaza’s main commercial crossing and the only one bordering Israel. It is also the only crossing where goods grown or produced in Gaza can be shipped for sale outside the territory. Karem Abu Salem was initially used for transporting humanitarian aid into Gaza for the territory’s two million residents. However, from 2007, Israel banned the entrance of a long list of goods into Gaza, including the entry of items it defines as “dual-use.” This means items that can have a civilian purpose, but which, according to Israel, could also be used for military purposes.
The al-Muntar (Karni) crossing: Al-Muntar (known to Israelis as Karni) is located in the northeastern end of Gaza, and was used for transferring goods between Gaza and Israel, and also for Israeli settlers to access settlements in Gaza before the 2005 Israeli disengagement. When Hamas took over the Gaza Strip in June 2007, Israel closed the crossing, and in 2011 it was permanently shut by Israel.
The al-Awdah (Sufa) crossing: The al-Awdah crossing, located in eastern Rafah, was one of the smallest crossings in Gaza, and was formerly a transit point for construction materials. It was shut down by Israel in 2008.
The al-Shujaiah (Nahal Ouz) crossing: Al-Shujaiah crossing (also known as Nahal Ouz), was designated for the transportation of fuel, such as gas, benzene and industrial diesel fuel into Gaza via underground pipes. The crossing was closed by Israeli authorities in 2010.
The al-Karara (Kissufim) crossing: Al-Karara, (also known as Kissufim), is located east of Khan Yunis and Deir al-Balah. It was closed in 2005 after Israel’s disengagement from Gaza, and is now mainly used for Israeli military action, as an entry point for tanks and military vehicles when military invasions of Gaza take place.