In making the call, Abdul Azeez Abdul Rahim (BN-Baling) said that without a permanent military attache in Rafah, the crossing point between Egypt and Gaza, more Malaysian groups wanting to help will be turned away.

He said Umno, which has donated US$200,000 (RM837,900) towards the reconstruction of the Al-Aqsa Mosque, was unable to proceed with its humanitarian mission recently as its team was unable to enter the border.

Azeez said this was the fourth Umno humanitarian mission that he has led since 2010 but was still not allowed in.

He said if there was a military attache, he could foster close ties with the Egyptian military, which will help facilitate the entry of Malaysian NGOs into Gaza.

Azeez urged senior minister for defence Hishammuddin Hussein to immediately work on this to expedite efforts to help Gaza.

“The reason preacher Ebit Lew was able to get in was because the military helped him get in.

“When we arrived, we were unable to enter. I stayed in Rafah for 25 days,” he told deputy foreign minister Kamarudin Jaffar (Bersatu-Bandar Tun Razak) in Dewan Rakyat today.

Kamarudin said the Malaysian embassies in Amman, Jordan and Cairo, Egypt, have always tried their best to support Malaysian NGOs headed there with humanitarian aid.

He also welcomed the suggestion for a military attache in Egypt and hoped the senior minister would look into the matter.