Angelina Jolie Visits Egypt’s Rafah Border, Meets Aid Workers Amid Gaza Crisis

Hollywood star Angelina Jolie on Friday visited the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing into Gaza, where she met members of the Red Crescent and truck drivers involved in transporting humanitarian aid, AFP journalists reported.

Accompanied by an American delegation and welcomed by former and current officials, Jolie said she was “honoured” to meet aid volunteers working at the crossing. A Red Crescent volunteer told the Oscar-winning actor that “there are thousands of aid trucks just waiting” at the border.

According to local media, Jolie — a former special envoy for the United Nations refugee agency — made the visit to assess the condition of injured Palestinians transferred to Egypt and to review the status of humanitarian aid deliveries to the war-ravaged territory.

Neither Jolie nor Egyptian authorities have officially commented on the visit so far.

The Rafah crossing was expected to reopen under the ceasefire in effect in Gaza since October but has remained closed. In a joint statement on Friday, Egypt and six other countries, including Saudi Arabia, urged the international community to pressure Israel, “as the occupying power, to immediately lift the constraints on the entry and distribution of essential supplies” into Gaza.

Earlier in December, Israel announced that the Rafah crossing would be opened only for people wishing to leave Gaza, a move that Egypt quickly denied approving.

Jolie, one of Hollywood’s most prominent figures, stepped down from her role as UNHCR special envoy at the end of 2022 after more than two decades of service, saying she wanted to focus on broader humanitarian efforts.