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Rafah crossing used as a bargaining chip in Gaza crisis

The economic and humanitarian interests of the people of the Gaza Strip and the Sinai Peninsula are relegated to the political game that will determine whether the Rafah crossing is reopened or not.
A Palestinian woman, hoping to cross into Egypt, cries as she waits with others at the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the southern Gaza Strip August 12, 2014. Under Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Cairo has secured closures on the Gaza border, increasing economic pressure on Hamas from a long-running Israeli blockade. Talks to end a month-long war between Israel and Islamist militants in Gaza have made no progress so far, an Israeli official said on Tuesday, as a 72-hour ceasefire in the shattere
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RAFAH, Egypt — The Rafah border crossing, which is the only link between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, has become a political tool through which the recent battles between post-Arab Spring alliances are being fought.

The crossing constitutes the only outlet and the last hope to improve the conditions of more than 1.8 million Palestinians in Gaza. However, it was transformed into a political bargaining chip, to the detriment of humanity and in favor of political interests in the region.

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