Egypt to open Rafah crossing for 3 days

Egypt will open the Rafah crossing with Gaza for three days on Saturday for students and humanitarian cases, the Palestinian Authority ambassador to Egypt said Wednesday. Barakat al-Farra told Ma'an that Egypt will open the crossing from Saturday to Monday to allow Gazan students who study in Egypt to catch up with their university courses. Humanitarian cases will also be allowed to cross, al-Farra added. The PA ambassador thanked the Egyptian government for responding to the requests of President Abbas to open the crossing and ease the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza. There have been frequent closures of the Rafah terminal in recent weeks due to political unrest in Egypt and violence in the Sinai peninsula. After the July coup, which deposed president Mohamed Morsi, Egypt's army has repeatedly closed the Rafah border crossing and destroyed hundreds of tunnels running under the town that Hamas used for years to import fuel, building materials and other goods. The Rafah crossing has been the principal connection between Gaza's 1.8 million residents and the outside world since the destruction of Gaza's international airport in 2001 and the subsequent air and naval blockade.