Palestinians stranded in Egypt call for assistance

Monday November 12, 2007 11:09 by Nisreen Qumsieh & Rami al-Mughari - IMEMC News

A group of approximately 6,000 Palestinians stranded on the Egyptian side of the Gaza-Israel border, on Monday morning delivered a petition to both Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak to intervene and help bring an end to their suffering.

Palestinians stranded at Rafah crossing

In the petition, the stranded Palestinians indicated that several of their number were suffering from serious diseases and called for immediate intervention to bring an end to their ongoing plight.

The petition added most of the group had no money or supplies left an, as such, were forced to sleep outdoors in the increasingly cold weather.

Last month, the Egyptian medical relief society, called for urgent assistance to resolve the crisis, arguing that the group's numbers were steadily rising.

The group has been stranded at al-Aresh town for the last three months.

rafah | refugees/immigration | news report nisreen at imemc dot org