Egypt-Israel Tension, Deadly Tornado Clusters, and Plummeting Birth Rates

Tipping Point Quick Hits (05.16.24)

Tensions are Growing Between Egypt and Israel

Earlier this week, the continued closure of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and Gaza has led to growing tension between the governments of Egypt and Israel. The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) seized the crossing from Hamas last week as a suspected prelude to its long-planned invasion of Rafah.

Israel has pressured Egypt to keep Hamas from controlling that crossing, which allows humanitarian aid convoys through the checkpoint. Israel Foreign Minister Israel Katz suggested that preventing a humanitarian crisis in Gaza would be up to Egypt.

Egypt fired back verbally. In a sharply worded statement, the office of Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry accused Israel of distorting facts, and said it “strongly denounced the desperate attempts of the Israeli side to hold Egypt responsible for the unprecedented humanitarian crisis witnessed in the Gaza Strip, which is a direct result of indiscriminate Israeli atrocities committed against the Palestinians for more than seven months.”