Exclusive: Egyptian firm charges trucks entering Gaza $20,000 in ‘bribes’

Egyptian tribal leader Ibrahim al-Organi has continued to exercise de facto control over the entry of aid and commercial trucks into Gaza after the ceasefire that came into effect on 19 January, Middle East Eye can reveal.

Efforts to bring aid into Gaza after the ceasefire are complicated by the exorbitant fees imposed on the entry of trucks, and the power granted to Organi’s firms to determine which trucks enter the strip, according to Egyptian and Palestinian sources who briefed MEE. 

Organi is a Sinai businessman, politician and tribal leader allied with President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi. Organi's name has become synonynous with unofficial profits made out of the suffocating Gaza blockade, particularly from desperate Palestinians attempting to flee the fighting.

MEE last year revealed that Organi made at least $2m daily from Palestinians who left the Gaza Strip via the border crossing point with Egypt, the only one not directly controlled by Israel at the time. Another report revealed that Organi’s companies charged aid trucks $5000 to enter Gaza.

Read more: Exclusive: Egyptian firm charges trucks entering Gaza $20,000 in ‘bribes’