U.S. State Department spokesman Matthew Miller confirmed yesterday that Israel has notified the U.S. that it will open an additional crossing into Gaza to increase the flow of relief supplies into the Strip, reported the Times of Israel. The crossing, called Kissufim, near the center of Gaza, has not been used since Israel evacuated settlements in the strip in 2005. “We have continued to press them, and we have seen them take additional steps,” Miller said, adding that the United States has also pressed Israel to ensure that at least 350 aid trucks enter Gaza daily. On Nov. 5, some 229 trucks were allowed to pass through, still below the target. On Nov. 8, the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) confirmed that the Kissufim Crossing will open soon following the completion of engineering work carried out in the area in recent weeks.
The opening of the Kissufim Crossing comes following the Oct. 13 Blinken-Austin letter setting a 30-day deadline for Israel to improve the flow of humanitarian relief into Gaza. It’s not clear, however, whether the opening of the gate is a response to the letter’s threat to restrict U.S. arms deliveries if Israel fails to improve the humanitarian situation in Gaza.
