Special to WorldTribune.com

GAZA CITY — Egypt, amid its counter-insurgency offensive, has
sharply restricted entry from the neighboring Hamas-ruled Gaza Strip.

Hamas officials said the new military-backed regime in Cairo has reduced
the flow of Palestinians from the Gaza Strip over the last month.

Hamas said the Egyptian military was allowing entry to 300 Palestinians per day, 25 percent of that before the military overthrow of President Mohammed Morsi.

“It is a key measure used to hurt us,” an official said.

Since the ouster of Morsi on July 3, Egypt has restricted operations at the Rafah Border Terminal to four hours a day. Officials said this included the Id Al Fitr festival that ended the Muslim fast month of Ramadan.

Officials said those most hurt by the Egyptian restrictions were Palestinians enrolled in universities in Egypt or those who sought medical treatment. They said travelers were forced to turn to the Rafah terminal as
Egyptian security forces destroyed smuggling tunnels that connected the Sinai Peninsula to the Gaza Strip.

Under Morsi, Hamas had expected the lifting of all restrictions for
Palestinian entry to Egypt. But officials said the new military-backed
regime was punishing the Gaza regime for its support of Egypt’s first
Islamist president.

“This is a situation that might continue for a while,” the official
said.

The Egyptian blockade on the Gaza Strip has fueled resentment among
Palestinians against the Hamas regime. A new Palestinian movement, “Rebel
Against Injustice,” has called for the ousting of Hamas in a protest
campaign set for Nov. 11.

“Those who carry resistance fighter rifles must stop pointing these
rifles at their own people, and stop scaring them, stabbing them, betraying
them and trading their pain,” the opposition movement said.

  Id Al Fitr, Post-Morsi restrictions on entry to Egypt from Gaza causing hardships for Palestinians, Rafah Border Terminal, Sinai Peninsula