Egypt temporarily opened a crossing with the Gaza Strip on Monday, allowing students, patients seeking medical care and dual nationals to leave the territory for the first time in nearly two months.
It was the first time Egypt opened the crossing since an Egyptian court last month declared the territory’s rulers, Hamas, a terrorist organisation.
Egypt sealed the border crossing in October 2014, citing security concerns, and has since opened it intermittently. But the crossing’s opening did not appear to signal a change in Egyptian policy.
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Some 1,200 people are expected to leave Gaza through the crossing during the two-day opening.
Meanwhile, Hamas on Monday condemned the arrests of 30 of its activists in the West Bank in a sweep that began on Sunday night. It was the first time in months that Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas’ Palestinian Authority has rounded up so many Hamas activists. The reason for the arrests was unclear.