Abbas urges Egypt to re-open Rafah terminal for students, humanitarian cases

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has urged Egyptian authorities to re-open Rafah border crossing, closed since Wednesday, to students and humanitarian cases. Abbas phoned Egyptian intelligence chief Mohamed Tohami and urged him to secure the re-opening of the terminal, Gaza's only gateway to the outside world, for special cases, the official Wafa news agency said. Egypt has closed the terminal on Wednesday following an attack on a military intelligence headquarters in Rafah city that killed six army personnel. Meanwhile, dozens of Palestinian students enrolled in universities abroad staged a protest outside the Palestinian side of the crossing against its ongoing closure. The students urged the Egyptian authorities to re-open the terminal so that they can join their universities. "Palestinian students have nothing to do with what is going on in Egypt," Momen Barood, one of the students, said. "They just want to continue their education," he added. The Egyptian army has launched an onslaught against militant groups thought to be based in the Sinai Peninsula, which borders Israel and the Gaza Strip. The military has also been destroying underground tunnels along borders with the coastal enclave, which has been reeling under a 7-year-Israeli blockade, citing "security reasons".