Cairo, Dec 2 (IANS): More than 500 people crossed the Rafah terminal when Egypt opened the one-way crossing for a second time in a week to allow the return of stranded Palestinians to the Gaza Strip, an official said.
The Palestinian department of borders and crossings said in a statement Monday that 537 people returned to Gaza during the two days -- on Sunday and Monday -- the crossing was open.
Rafah was open only for Palestinians entering Gaza via Egypt.
Egypt also opened the crossing for two days earlier last week when some 500 stranded Palestinians were allowed to enter. Before last Wednesday, the terminal had been closed for more than 30 days.
The terminal was closed by Egyptian authorities in the aftermath of a terror attack in North Sinai Oct 24 that left 31 army men dead, state-run MENA news agency reported.
Among the returnees, 104 were deported from Arab and other foreign countries.