Rafah border crossing reopens to allow foreign nationals and wounded Palestinians into Egypt

The Rafah border crossing reopened Monday to allow foreign nationals and wounded Palestinians to move from Gaza into Egypt after being closed over the weekend, an Egyptian border official told a journalist working for CNN in Rafah.

Rafah is the only Gazan border crossing that isn't controlled by Israel, which shut down its crossings with the territory last month. Last week, a breakthrough was reached to allow foreign passport holders and a group of critically injured civilians to depart through Rafah

However, the crossing temporarily closed over the weekend following an Israeli airstrike that hit a Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance.

As part of the reopening Monday, the Egyptian border official said a total of nine wounded Palestinians with severe injuries sustained from Israeli airstrikes in Gaza had been able to cross to receive treatment in hospitals across Egypt. Five people accompanied the wounded, the official added. According to a CNN tally, this brings the total number of Palestinians who have been transferred to Egypt for treatment to 93.

Ambulances from the Egyptian Red Crescent had lined up near the border on Monday before the wounded Palestinians were allowed to cross, waiting to transport them to hospitals, the journalist working for CNN witnessed.

The General Authority for Crossings and Borders in Gaza also announced Monday afternoon that the Rafah crossing had opened for foreign nationals and Egyptian citizens whose names were included in an initial November 1 list. The authority urged those people to head to the crossing immediately, stressing that only those on the list would be allowed to cross through.

In the opposite direction, at least 25 aid trucks, sent by the Egyptian Red Crescent, crossed into Gaza on Sunday, the Palestinian Red Crescent Society (PRCS) in Ramallah told CNN in a statement, bringing the total number of trucks that have been allowed to cross into Gaza to 476. Additional trucks were expected to have crossed on Monday, but due to poor communications in some areas, the PCRS was unable to confirm if they had made it through.

On average, about 30 trucks per day have been passing through, PCRS said. In its statement, PRCS highlighted once again that fuel supplies still have not been allowed into the enclave.