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Thursday, January 23, 2025

Egyptian Crimson Crescent help to folks in Gaza


Written by Kelsey Lemon, Vice-President, Worldwide Cooperation
 
I’m in Al-Arish, Egypt, the final city earlier than you attain the Rafah border crossing, which separates Egypt and Gaza. On the day I go to, it has been 16 days since humanitarian assist has been let by means of the crossing and there are vans with humanitarian cargo so far as the attention can see. It’s simple to marvel what’s going to occur when the border opens – what’s the order? Who will get in first?
 
The reply lies with the Egyptian Crimson Crescent, who has been coordinating all humanitarian assist crossing from Egypt into Gaza because the escalation of battle in October 2023. I’m in Egypt to go to their logistics hub warehouse and study extra in regards to the help they’re offering in each Gaza and Egypt to folks impacted by the continuing battle.
 
The Egyptian Crimson Crescent isn’t simply supporting humanitarian assist logistics, though this has develop into a key focus of their response. They’re additionally supporting medical evacuees from Gaza and their households who’re staying in Egypt, working with the Palestine Crimson Crescent Society to run camps for displaced folks in Gaza and distributing meals parcels, scorching meals and bread. The response is supported by hundreds of devoted employees and volunteers, typically working across the clock to make sure folks have the assistance they want.
 
Logistics as a lifeline
 
Getting sufficient humanitarian assist into Gaza has been an unlimited problem because the escalation of battle. Support had been rising within the weeks main as much as Might 6, however the border closure has led to a backlog of vans, with roughly 2,900 ready to be let by means of as of Might 22. The backlog continues to develop too, with new assist coming in day by day by way of air, land, and sea from around the globe.
 
Kelsey Lemon receiving a tour of Egyptian Red Crescent logistics hub from Lotfy Gheith.Egyptian Crimson Crescent personnel deal with nearly each side of coordinating humanitarian assist for all humanitarian organizations – not simply the Crimson Cross and Crimson Crescent Motion – from the time it arrives in Egypt to when it crosses into Gaza. I’m proven across the logistics warehouse by Lotfy Gheith, Egyptian Crimson Crescent head of operations. He tells us that their logistics warehouse is staffed 24 hours a day and descriptions how the humanitarian assist is dealt with, with personnel receiving and packaging it, contracting truck drivers and monitoring the place the shipments are of their journey.
 
It’s an immensely sophisticated operation, particularly for a company that simply began doing large-scale logistics eight months in the past. Along with the backlog of humanitarian assist, some widespread gadgets corresponding to tents with pegs, sure energy turbines, kitchen units with knives, and kids’s toys in metallic containers usually are not allowed to cross the border. This implies if any of these things are in shipments, your complete truck is turned again. With no clear record of things which can be accredited or denied entry, assist is being additional delayed in reaching the individuals who want it most. 
 
Transport trucks with humanitarian aid lined up near the Egypt-Gaza border, waiting to cross.Because the work all occurs behind the scenes, earlier than the humanitarian assist reaches Gaza, it’s simple to miss the significance of it. Seeing the tireless work of Egyptian Crimson Crescent personnel first-hand, sorting pallets of humanitarian assist in extraordinarily scorching climate, it’s clear they see the significance of what they’re doing. “Volunteers are working right here within the scorching climate, and within the very chilly climate after we began in October and November,” Dr. Amal Emam, appearing CEO of Egyptian Crimson Crescent tells me. “They’ve by no means stopped…giving from their hearts.”
 
The identical might be mentioned for supporting the truck drivers ready to move assist throughout the border. Drivers should stick with their shipments, typically ready days (or weeks as is the case proper now) in more and more scorching climate to cross into Gaza. This implies they will’t depart their vans to get meals or use the toilet, they usually haven’t any timeline for when they are going to be capable of return dwelling.
 
Egyptian Crimson Crescent personnel have been offering truck drivers with meals and are working a major health-care clinic that may assist meet any primary well being wants the drivers have. As we move by means of a staging space for vans close to the border, we additionally see Egyptian Crimson Crescent personnel sitting with vans so the drivers can depart their vans for a couple of minutes.
 
It’s devastating to think about all of the humanitarian assist caught at this border crossing, whereas folks in Gaza proceed to wrestle to satisfy their most simple wants. It’s crucial that Rafah border crossing be reopened and enough humanitarian assist be permitted to enter Gaza going ahead.
 
Assist to medical evacuees
 
Whereas in Al-Arish, we additionally had the chance to go to a hospital the place individuals who have been evacuated from Gaza obtain medical care. The Authorities of Egypt is coordinating bringing folks with complicated instances that may’t be handled in Gaza to Egypt, with Egyptian Crimson Crescent offering help to them and their households. There are at present round 3,300 medical evacuees in Egypt, with about 6,000 relations accompanying them.
 
Whereas lucky to be receiving the healthcare they want, these households additionally face the daunting prospect of not figuring out if or after they’ll be capable of return dwelling. It’s tough to obtain updates and join with household in Gaza, as web connectivity is spotty at greatest and at occasions, non-existent. It’s a “so shut, but to this point” state of affairs; Al-Arish has been spared from the continuing hostilities but is shut sufficient to Gaza which you could generally hear airstrikes and see clouds of black smoke.
 
The primary place we go to is a child-friendly area, the place kids whose relations are receiving medical care have the chance sing, draw, and giggle, even when only for a couple of minutes. In working with the youngsters, the volunteers hold a watch out for indicators {that a} youngster might require further help, through which case they will refer them for extra specialised psychological well being help. Among the kids confirmed us their artwork, that includes beloved relations and reminiscences of their houses and communities in Gaza.
 
We additionally meet a couple of of the sufferers receiving medical care right here. One older lady who has two damaged legs is right here together with her daughter. Two younger ladies from Gaza share a room – one has cerebral palsy, and the opposite is ready for a lung transplant and requires a gentle movement of oxygen. Some sufferers will keep at this hospital to obtain therapy, whereas others can be transferred on to different hospitals in Egypt or overseas to obtain the care they want.
 
Along with their work on the child-friendly area, Egyptian Crimson Crescent volunteers are additionally offering scorching meals to evacuees and their households, gadgets to furnish their momentary houses in Egypt, and money help. It’s very important help for households dealing with a cherished one’s sickness whereas being displaced.
 
“A message of affection”
 
A couple of kilometres down the highway, Mostafa Refaat lights up when he talks in regards to the Humanitarian Kitchen, the place Egyptian Crimson Crescent personnel put together heat meals, bread, and meals parcels for folks from Gaza. “It’s not about bread, it’s a message of hope,” he tells us. “A message of affection.”
 
It’s additionally a powerful operation, contemplating Egyptian Crimson Crescent solely began offering meals help a couple of months in the past. They started in January 2024 and supplied meals help throughout Ramadan in March, working with the Palestine Crimson Crescent Society to ship scorching meals in camps for displaced folks, in addition to different places in each Rafah and Khan Younis. The workforce was offering 7,000 to fifteen,000 meals and about 60,000 loaves of bread day by day throughout this peak, working 24 hours a day.
 
A volunteer carries bread that Egyptian Red Crescent delivered to people in Gaza during Ramadan.Since then, they’ve needed to cut back the meals help and give attention to high quality management, meals security, and temperature management for delivery meals. Whereas they’re nonetheless giving scorching meals to truck drivers and medical evacuees in Egypt, their help in Gaza has shifted to meals parcels and freeze-dried meals which can be non-perishable and simpler to move.
 
It’s evident there’s a connection the Egyptian Crimson Crescent has with their neighbours in Gaza. Along with working with diet specialists to make sure the meals meets dietary wants, groups are additionally making an attempt to make sure the meals tastes like dwelling. “Right here in…North Sinai, we have now the identical conventional means of getting ready meals as Gaza and Rafah,” Mostafa tells us. “It’s not nearly rice and meat, there’s a odor” that makes the 2 cuisines related.
 
Mostafa and his workforce hope to extend their help to the degrees seen throughout Ramadan, and are persevering with to work to search out the most secure, only approach to transport meals into Gaza.
 
Volunteers on the coronary heart of what we do
 
Volunteers are on the coronary heart of the work the Crimson Cross Crimson Crescent Motion does, and the Egyptian Crimson Crescent isn’t any completely different. Repeatedly on my journey, I meet volunteers who’re so motivated to assist their neighbours in Gaza.
 
Red Cross Red Crescent personnel at the Egyptian Red Crescent Humanitarian Kitchen.In Cairo, we meet two Egyptian Crimson Crescent volunteers who’re refugees themselves packing meals parcels for Gaza. Ruba is Palestinian and arrived in Egypt two years in the past. Riham is Sudanese and arrived a few yr in the past; having obtained help from Egyptian Crimson Crescent volunteers when she arrived, she determined to volunteer herself. She now calls her fellow volunteers her household.
 
Assembly these devoted volunteers additionally jogs my memory of the colleagues we have now misplaced over the previous eight months of this battle. As of Might 30, 24 Crimson Cross Crimson Crescent Motion colleagues have been killed whereas conducting their humanitarian duties. Humanitarian staff have to be protected and permitted to hold out their life-saving work.
 
I’m grateful to the Crimson Cross Crimson Crescent Motion volunteers who proceed to help the folks of their communities, typically at nice private danger to themselves. Whether or not in Egypt, Gaza or Israel, our devoted groups are giving their all to make sure folks obtain the help they want.

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