Palestinians pour into Egypt after Rafah border wall destroyed

Egyptian security forces stood by and did not confront the Palestinians.

Ma'an's reporter said that the Gazans began stocking up on supplies from Egyptian stores in the town of Al-Arish. Some bought cement at 27 Egyptian pounds per sack. A sack of the same size costs 150 NIS, or more than five times the price in Egypt. At times, even the cement needed to make tombs for the dead has been scarce in the Gaza Strip.

Gazan merchants sent trucks to import medicine and other goods.

Gazans also bought clothes which have become scarce in Gaza's markets after eight months of Israeli-imposed siege.

A sudden influx of tobacco from Egypt resulted in a drop in the price of a pack of cigarettes. From 20 NIS down to 10 NIS.

Palestinians stranded on the Egyptian side of the border for weeks or months streamed back into the Gaza Strip, having found a sudden solution to their plight.

On Tuesday, dozens were injured when Egyptian riot police blocked a surging crowd of Palestinian women from rushing through the Rafah border crossing into Egypt.

Food, medicine, fuel, and other basic necessities had grown scare in the Gaza Strip after months of sanctions and a total blockade that began on Friday.

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