STORY: Rafah crossing, "life passage" for Gaza Strip
SHOOTING TIME: Oct. 21, 2023; Nov. 15, 2023
DATELINE: Nov. 18, 2023
LENGTH: 00:03:04
LOCATION: Cairo
CATEGORY: SOCIETY

SHOTLIST:
1. various of route to the Rafah border crossing airport
2. STANDUP 1 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
3. various of Red Crescent Society Emergency Operations Center Airport Team
4. SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): LOTFY GHEITH, Manager of emergency operation center of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society
5. various of truck to Rafah border crossing
6. STANDUP 2 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
7. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): LOTFY GHEITH, Manager of emergency operation center of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society
8. various of trucks and ambulances leading to Rafah border crossing
9. STANDUP 3 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
10. various of an ambulance
11. SOUNDBITE 3 (English): WAGDY AMIN, Doctor of Al-Arish Hospital

STORYLINE:

As the Hamas-Israel conflict dragged on into the second month, the Rafah border crossing, the only crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, has become a "life passage" for the Gazans trapped in the besieged enclave.

The crossing plays a crucial role in evacuations and the delivery of humanitarian aid after the conflict plunged Gaza's more than two million people into a humanitarian crisis.

STANDUP 1 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
"I'm now at the Al-Arish Airport in North Sinai Province in Egypt. This morning (Nov. 15) we left Cairo at about 6:00. And after six hours' bus trip, now we are here at the Al-Arish Airport. This airport is the last stop for receiving humanitarian aid from world countries and organizations before the aid goes into Gaza Strip. Now let's take a look at how the aid can be uploaded onto the trucks before they go to Gaza Strip." 
SOUNDBITE 1 (Arabic): LOTFY GHEITH, Manager of emergency operation center of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society
"We review the items to be sent by the trucks and make sure the packing is conducted in line with the fixed specifications, so it can pass from the Israeli crossing to the Palestinian crossing."

STANDUP 2 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
"I'm now at the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing. As we can see, there are a few trucks loaded with aid (supplies). They are lining and waiting for crossing the border and heading to Gaza Strip." 
SOUNDBITE 2 (English): LOTFY GHEITH, Manager of emergency operation center of the Egyptian Red Crescent Society
"This is the only door for passing all the items, and preparing the items to be sent through this gate is one of the hardest things that we have to do. We have to prepare them to be ready to be sent due to or upon request on the other side.
Now we have three main (categories) to be provided mainly: the food and the non-food items and the medications. This is the top needed now due to the situation. Minute after minute, the situation is changing from time to time as they say, so we are ready for providing everything."

STANDUP 3 (English): YAO BING, Xinhua correspondent
"I'm now at the Al-Arish Hospital in Egypt's North Sinai Province. Just now we came from the Rafah border crossing and the Al-Arish Airport. And now let's take a look at how the hospital is going." 
SOUNDBITE 3 (English): WAGDY AMIN, Doctor of Al-Arish Hospital
"We already received more than 70 cases. Around 40 cases are cured and cared, and now we have about 32 patients still in the hospital.
The patients are already triaged when they crossed the border and they are distributed for the hospitals. And when the patients come here, we assist the patients in the emergency rooms and then we can put the patients according to the cases and severity in the wards or in the ICU. Then we make another assessment to the patients for the operations."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Cairo.
(XHTV)