GAZA STUDENTS: Border Crossing Media Double-Talk?

Today AP included this language in a report titled: Israel agrees to ease Gaza land blockade

"However, Egypt is only letting in people with special travel permits, such as students and Gazans with foreign passports. In the past two weeks, 10,000 Gazans have crossed into Egypt though many more want to leave. A senior Egyptian security official has said the loosened restrictions will remain in place indefinitely."

QUESTION: WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS FOR OBTAINING A 'SPECIAL TRAVEL PERMIT'? Does this require an embassy visit? And if so, how does a non-permit holding student obtain permission to cross the border to get to an embassy to get a 'special travel permit'?

---------------

THE UK INDEPENDENT 

Published a story on June 12, 2010 indicating the following: "Although Egypt opened the crossing in the wake of the lethal Israeli commando raid on a pro-Palestinian flotilla last week, apparently to escape some of the blame for the closure, it has restricted passage mainly to students with visas to study abroad, serious medical cases, and those with foreign residency or passports." NOTE: "students with visas" - THAT IS NOT APPLICABLE TO THOSE STUDENTS WHO HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO GET TO EITHER CAIRO OR JERUSALEM TO COMPLETE REQUIRED PAPERWORK OR SECURE VISAS.

QUESTION: 'Students WITH visas' - how does a student get a visa in the first place? And if the student does not have the visa but needs to GET OUT to GET the visa, how does the student do that?

---------------

IN THE UK GUARDIAN June 11, 2010

The Egyptian authorities have restricted passage to Gazans who also hold foreign passports, those needing medical treatment and those trying to pursue studies abroad.

QUESTION: 'Those trying to pursue studies abroad' - is a broad statement, it does not specify, are they allowing students who NEED TO OBTAIN VISAS, or restricting it to students who ALREADY HAVE visas, and if they could not get out to get visas in the first place, how is it that any of them have visas??

---------------

BOTTOM LINE: Is the issue of students needing to cross the border to GET VISAS being lost in the double-talk about 'exceptions'?

---------------

LASTLY: All of the above relates to the border crossing at Rafah. What about those who need to pass through Israeli borders to reach embassies in Jerusalem? The border crossing issue may/does not necessarily to students residing in Gaza...

---------------

NO GAZA STUDENT LEFT BEHIND
Press Release

Also online at Congress.org
Also online at The American Muslim
Also online at MyCrescent
More at Aishah's Journey (enter GAZA in search box on right)
More at Facebook
ALSO CHECK EGYPT'S OCTOBER WEEKLY MAGAZINE (SATURDAY, JUNE 19)

Sign the 'No Gaza Student Left Behind' Petition 
http://tinyurl.com/sign-gaza-student-petition 

HOW TO SEND YOUR LETTER (OR A COPY OF MWA'S LETTER)
President Barack Obama
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20500
Comments: 202-456-1111
Switchboard: 202-456-1414
Fax: 202-456-2461
Email: http://www.whitehouse.gov/contact
Email: http://www.emailthepresident.com