"No update on if and when" Rafah crossing will open to distribute Gaza relief via Egypt, says UN official

According to UN Secretary General deputy spokesperson Farhan Haq, there is "no update on if and when" the Rafah border crossing will open to let humanitarian aid into Gaza from Egypt. This was stated on Wednesday.

The office of Israel's prime minister previously stated that Israel will not obstruct the entry of humanitarian aid into Gaza via the crossing.

Israeli shelling is to blame, according to Egyptian President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, for keeping the crucial crossing closed on Wednesday.

At a press conference, Sisi declared alongside visiting German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, "Egypt did not close the Rafah crossing since the outbreak of the crisis, but that Israeli shelling from the Palestinian side prevented it from opening."

Drivers of aid convoys and volunteers have been waiting since the wee hours of Tuesday at the Egyptian end of the border.