Angelina Jolie, the acclaimed Hollywood actress and long-standing humanitarian, has undertaken a poignant mission to the Egypt-Gaza border. The 50-year-old former special envoy for the United Nations refugee agency travelled to the Rafah crossing on Friday.
A Mission of Compassion at the Rafah Crossing
Her primary objective was to meet with injured Palestinians who have been medically evacuated from Gaza and are now receiving treatment in Egypt. Jolie engaged directly with those affected by the conflict, offering support and drawing international attention to their plight.
During her visit, she also spoke extensively with members of the Egyptian Red Crescent and the truck drivers who are tasked with the critical job of ferrying humanitarian aid into the devastated territory. She used the opportunity to look closely into the mechanics and challenges of aid delivery, underscoring her hands-on approach to advocacy.
A Consistent Record of Humanitarian Advocacy
This trip to North Africa follows another dangerous mission just two months prior. In November, Jolie was spotted in the embattled Ukrainian city of Kherson, a frequent target of Russian forces.
Photographs showed her wearing body armour bearing the patch of the Legacy of War Foundation. Reports indicate she visited local hospitals, including a maternity ward and a children's hospital, highlighting the impact of war on civilians. In one touching scene, she was pictured playing with children in a playroom, all while donning protective gear.
A Decades-Long Commitment to Refugees
Jolie's dedication to humanitarian causes is well-documented. She served as a UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador from 2001 to 2012 and continued as a Special Envoy until 2022. In this capacity, she carried out more than 60 field missions globally.
Even after stepping down from her formal UN role to focus on broader human rights issues, she has repeatedly returned to conflict zones. Her work in Ukraine has been particularly sustained:
- In 2022, she visited Lviv, meeting children injured in the Kramatorsk train station missile strike and speaking with displaced families at the city's railway station during air raid sirens.
- That same year, she met Ukrainian child refugees at the Bambino Gesu paediatric hospital in Rome.
Her profound contributions were formally recognised in 2013 when she received the prestigious Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award.
Through these actions, Angelina Jolie continues to use her global platform to spotlight humanitarian crises, advocate for displaced people, and pressure the international community to uphold basic human rights. Her latest visit to the Rafah border crossing reinforces her unwavering commitment to these principles.
