Egypt opens Gaza crossing for two days

By Hani al-Shaer and Nur Abu Aisha

GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Egyptian authorities on Tuesday reopened the Rafah border crossing with the blockaded Gaza Strip for two days, according to Gaza's crossings authority.

"The terminal will remain open for two days in both directions to allow those stranded and humanitarian cases to cross," the Hamas-run authority said in a statement.

Last week, Egypt opened the terminal for four days to allow Gaza-based pilgrims to cross to fly to Saudi Arabia for the annual Hajj.

Blockaded by Israel -- by air, land and sea -- since 2007, the Gaza Strip has seven border crossings linking it to the outside world.

Six of these are controlled by Israel, while the seventh -- the Rafah crossing -- is controlled by Egypt, which keeps it tightly sealed for the most part since the ouster of President Mohamed Morsi in a 2013 military coup.

Israel sealed four of its commercial crossings with Gaza in June 2007 after Palestinian group Hamas wrested control of the strip from the West Bank-based Palestinian Authority.