CAIRO: Preparations are underway for a convoy of buses to travel on May 14 from Cairo to the Rafah border between Egypt and Gaza, organized by a Cairo-based activist group called the Coordinating Committee for the March to Gaza (CCMG).
The committee is planning to lead a convoy of 13 buses from Tahir Square to the border. It is comprised of several campaigning groups, such as the National Front for Justice and Democracy and Al-Karama Party.
They will be joined by many others in the Arab world as part of a collective call for a “Third Intifada” against the Israeli occupation of Palestinian land. This is to begin on May 15 to mark Nakba Day, an annual day of commemoration for the Palestinian people to mark the creation of Israel.
The demands of the CCMG include the right of return for refugees; the permanent opening of the Rafah crossing; to stop the export of Egyptian natural gas to Israel; and the demand to release all the Palestinian detainees in Egyptian prisons. Their overall aim, as stated in a press release issued on May 9, is “the liberation of all occupied territory, and an end to the Zionist project in the region.”
An interior ministry statement affirmed Egypt’s support for Palestinians but urged activists to cancel the march to avoid any risks it may pose for Egypt at this critical stage.
The CCMG had planned to lead a large group to the border crossing and then into Gaza when the crossing will be temporarily open. Their plan was to join Gazan protesters as they marked Nakba Day. However, overwhelming demand for places on the buses has led the organizers to rethink their original plans. “We now have over 700 online applications for places, and this is still increasing,” said May Shahin, one of the program organizers.
“The large numbers of protesters may cause problems for the people of Gaza as well as the government controlled by Hamas.”
The organizers now plan to reach the Rafah border crossing on May 14 and organize a sit-in at the border, with the plan to come back to Cairo on May 15.
“Though the plan for the day has changed, the demands of the activists remains the same,” Shahin added.
The organizers still see the event as proof of ordinary Egyptians showing commitment to the plight of the Palestinians.
“People knew from the beginning that there was only a slim chance that we would actually make it through the border,” stated May Abdallah, a filmmaker wishing to travel with the convoy, “but we will now probably just get to Rafah. Though we are disappointed by the news, the fact that a group of protestors will go to demonstrate at the Rafah crossing will still be symbolic and create impact.”
There is a planned rally in Tahrir Square at 09:00 on May 14, with some demonstrators travelling by buses to the Rafah crossing at 12:00 on the same day.
As revolts and demonstrations have occurred throughout the Middle East since December 2010, there has been added impetus for the Palestinian issue to be a part of the broader agenda of freedom.
As a result, Egyptian authorities brokered a deal which led to the signing of a historic reconciliation accord in Cairo on May 4 between the Fatah and Hamas. Their common goal is to work towards a Palestinian state with full sovereignty on the 1967 borders with Jerusalem as the capital.
One step towards this main goal is the demand to permanently open the Rafah border which connects Egypt with Gaza. Under ousted president Hosni Mubarak, the border was only opened sporadically, mainly to allow medical and food supplies as well as students through the crossing.
