Egyptian police turned back a delegation of 60 international volunteers this morning a few miles from the Gaza border, ignoring a United Nations invitation that described the group as "a vital means of shedding light on the present circumstances and bringing hope to ordinary Gazans." For some of the volunteers it was the fourth day that they had been turned back.
The group includes chiefly international students based in Cairo but also parties from New York and Canada. They are carrying medical supplies, soccer balls, and crayons, among other items on the long list of basic goods that Gazans cannot get their hands on due to an Israeli blockade of the Gaza strip, and the Egyptian government's compliance with that blockade.
"They told us there was a military action on the road, and they had riot trucks at the ready," Ali Glenesk, a leader of the Cairo-based student group said this morning after the group was turned back at a checkpoint. "But we saw taxis getting through."
Glenesk said the volunteers' spirits were high. "My spirits are good because no matter what we are drawing attention to the issue. We want the world to know what is happening here."
It is now 11:30 in El-Arish, the seaside resort at which the volunteers have gathered. Having conferred with associates in Cairo who are lobbying the Egyptian foreign ministry, they are planning a second attempt on the border this afternoon.
