Updated 11.55am with Egyptian Embassy explanation.

A woman who travelled to Egypt to personally oversee two containers of aid into Gaza has had to abandon her mission and return to Malta.

Sanaa El-Nahhal spent months in Egypt trying to organise the passage of humanitarian aid into the Palestinian territory.

But the shipment of food, clothing and other items collected by volunteers in Malta is among thousands of aid trucks stuck on the Egyptian side of the border.

It is being held up by authorities in the port of Alexandria in northern Egypt, with costs running into the thousands of euros and continuing to increase each day, El-Nahhal explained.

She said once Israel began its assault on Rafah – the sole crossing point between Egypt and Gaza – she knew there was “no way” she would make it across the border.

Around 1.4 million people had sought refuge in Rafah at the start of Israel’s offensive in the region, a figure that has since dropped dramatically with around 800,000 people fleeing the embattled city.

But, despite the hold-ups, the Arabic Culture Information Society (ACIS) president remains optimistic the containers will be released soon.

She said they are in the hands of a regional NGO called Life Makers that has agreed to shoulder further costs and take over management of the containers and their onward journey to Gaza.

In February, the 55-year-old set off for Egypt, telling Times of Malta she was “ready to die” to personally ensure the shipments of aid reached the conflict-stricken Palestinian enclave.

What we do is not much but it’s not nothing – I know it’s small but it’s better than nothing- Arabic Culture Information Society president Sanaa El-Nahhal

El-Nahhal arrived in Egypt at the end of February, with the containers arriving some two weeks later, there to continue their journey to Gaza. But progress ground to a halt as the shipments became bogged down in port bureaucracy.

“The charges have been going up every day for more than two months... the costs are now into the thousands,” she said, explaining that daily demurrage charges of up to €150 were being accrued after port authorities refused to release the containers.

Demurrage charges are fees paid to owners of a chartered vessel – in this case the shipping company – when goods are not unloaded by an agreed deadline. El-Nahhal said the company had been “quite helpful” and had granted extensions.

She added that Malta’s foreign ministry has agreed to cover part of the shipping costs.

El-Nahhal said she had been told by the shipping company that port authorities had continued to request additional paperwork, significantly lengthening the process.

“The last update I had was the customs part is done and now they’re working on releasing the other goods,” she said, explaining that additional tests on some food items were now needed.

Sanaa El-Nahhal decided to return to Malta following Israel’s assault on Rafah. Photo: James Cummings.

Family and future efforts

During her time in Egypt, El-Nahhal spent her days on the phone and in meetings with local officials – including the Palestinian Ambassador to Egypt – trying to arrange her and the containers’ journey to Gaza.

While in the country she stayed with her daughter, Lina, who accompanied her back to Malta.

Describing a difficult and exhausting time in Egypt, El-Nahhal said she had been admitted to hospital after suffering from health problems due to stress but insisted she was more focused on helping people in Gaza.

Asked about her own family, El-Nahhal said she had hundreds of extended family members still in Gaza. One of her cousins in Gaza was killed in an airstrike along with his wife and children, she said.

And while some have managed to get to Egypt, she said the family could not afford to get everyone out with costs of at least €5,000 per person.

But she said she was determined to continue to try to help.

“We [ACIS] never stop; we keep trying. What we do is not much but it’s not nothing – I know it’s small but it’s better than nothing. Every truck counts and we will never stop,” she said.

“All my friends try to help and do the best they can. And I thank all my friends because without them I cannot do anything.”

Egyptian embassy explains

The Egyptian embassy in a reaction said  Egypt has been receiving tons of aid directed to Gaza since the beginning of the crisis, and has led the process of moving aid to Gaza with international partners. However, in order to organize this process, the government had put in place some conditions that have to be taken into consideration:

a) "The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Egypt is the focal point for any party who is willing to send aid to Gaza through Egypt.

b) "El-Areesh airport is the only exclusive airport allocated to receive aid from Governments and UN agencies.

c) "In case the aid is from an NGO or a Civil Society Organization, arrangements take place through the government of the country to which this organization belongs with Egypt’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

d) "All aid is received via the Egyptian Red Crescent Organization, which stores it safely at El-Areesh airport until transported to the Gaza strip and handed to the Palestinian Red Crescent."

The embassy said Mrs. El-Nahhal did not coordinate with the Embassy in Malta regarding the aid to Gaza, and did not comply with the aforementioned conditions. This was clear from the fact that the containers were in Alexandria harbour and not in the port allocated for that purpose.

The embassy also stressed that Egypt does not take any fees for access of aid to Gaza.