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Egyptian authorities allow the 'Miles of Smiles' convoy to take aid to Gaza

May 28, 2018 at 4:01 am

A convoy carrying medical and food in aid in Gaza on 18 July 2014 [Hatem Omar/Apaimages]

The convoy of “Miles of Smiles” is getting ready to visit Gaza Strip next week, after securing dates of entry through the Rafah crossing, under the agreement of the Egyptian authorities.

“There is full coordination with the Egyptian authorities on everything related to this convoy,” said Essam Yousef, the coordinator of the campaign, during an interview with Quds Press.

He said that “activists from Britain, Belgium, Germany, Algeria, Jordan, Indonesia, and Kuwait will be participating in this convoy.”

According to Yousef, “the convoy will be carrying food and medical aid and it is fully secured by Egypt and ready to be transported. It also carries in-kind aid which will be delivered directly to the beneficiaries in Gaza Strip.”

“The convoy carries about 18,000 food packages and medical aids including medicines and necessary medical supplies offered in support of some hospitals,” Yousef said, adding:

The delegation will visit a large number of inmates and pay their debts. They will also visit the victims of the Great March of Return, either in hospitals or in their homes, provide medical assistance to them, and repair a number of poor people’s houses

Read: ‘Unprecedented humanitarian crisis’ in Gaza, says UN update

The delegation, which comes within the framework of the campaign “Devote your Ramadan to Gaza… Palestine,” will arrive on Saturday, and spend a whole week in the Strip.

Al-Barakah Charitable Association, Algerian Humanitarian, Turkish GDD Association, the Palestine Relief and Development Fund in Britain, and Turkish Medex Association in addition to other charitable organizations will take part in this campaign in its 34th version.

Since the beginning of the Israeli siege in 2007, many Arab and international delegations have visited the Gaza Strip, along with convoys. According to official statistics, about two million people have visited Gaza in solidarity with its besieged population.