Egypt army blocks Gaza march

Rafah border crossing point

Source: Press TV
http://www.presstv.ir/detail/179924.html

Egyptian authorities have reportedly blocked access to the Sinai Peninsula to prevent activists from reaching the Gazan town of Rafah.

Pro-Palestinian activists plan to march to the Gaza Strip on Sunday, to mark the 63rd anniversary of the day of Nakba, or catastrophe, which marks the day when Israel occupied Palestinian lands.

The Egyptian army has warned against rallies at the Rafah border crossing with the Gaza Strip.

However, a convoy left Cairo's Liberation square on Saturday to head to Sinai.

Organizers say their march is to show that the Palestinian issue concerns all Arabs and supporting it remains a concern for Egyptians.

The activists are calling for Palestinian statehood, an end to the Israeli occupation, as well as the release of all Palestinian prisoners.

Egyptians have frequently demanded their military rulers to abandon Israel and lift the blockade on the besieged Gaza Strip.

Egypt's political parties say the Gaza blockade serves the interests of Israel and the US and threatens regional stability and independence.

Under the US-backed Mubarak regime, Egypt consistently served Tel Aviv's interests in the region by helping to impose a crippling blockade on the impoverished Strip after the democratically-elected Hamas government took control of the territory in 2007