Egypt Sets Conditions for Iranian MPs’ Gaza Visit

After Israel opened assault on the Gaza Strip on July 8, a six-member panel of Iranian legislators decided to travel to the blockaded enclave to provide relief supplies for the war-torn residents and meet the bereaved families of victims of the Israeli onslaught.

But the delegation is first required to obtain a visa to enter Egypt, which controls Rafah border crossing, the only window to the outside world for the blockaded Gaza Strip.

Speaking to Tasnim on Tuesday, Iranian MP Hassan Kamran explained that Cairo has sent a letter to the Iranian Parliament, imposing conditions on the planned visit to Gaza.

Cairo has instructed that the Iranian delegation’s trip to Gaza be made exclusively for providing relief supplies, Kamran said.

He added that Egypt has also set conditions on the type of Iran’s humanitarian and medical aids for Gaza, the way those supplies could be delivered to the enclave, and has also provided a framework for the members of the delegation.

Back on July 18, Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif had called on his Egyptian counterpart Samih Shukri to play a more active role to put an end to the massacre of defenseless people in the Gaza Strip by the occupying Zionist regime.

Cairo’s frequent closure of the Rafah border crossing has exacerbated an already dire humanitarian situation in the enclave.

On July 8, Israel launched air strikes on Gaza. After 10 days of bombardment of the enclave from the air and sea, the Israeli forces started a ground operation in densely-populated territory.

The death toll from more than four weeks of Israeli onslaught on Gaza has reached over 1,800 and more than 9,000 have been wounded.