Israel on Friday said it would reopen the pedestrian border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt over the weekend, marking an important step forward for US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan.
The Coordination of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Israeli military body in charge of coordinating aid to Gaza, said that starting today, a “limited movement of people only” would be allowed through the Rafah crossing, Gaza’s main gateway to the outside world.
The announcement followed statements from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Palestinian National Committee for the Administration of Gaza Chief Commissioner Ali Shaath that it would likely open soon.
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While COGAT said the passage would today open in both directions, Shaath said the first day would be a trial for operations and that travel both ways would start tomorrow.
Israel as of Friday agreed to allow up to 150 people to leave each day — 50 medical patients with two family members, an official familiar with the situation said, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Up to 50 people who fled during the war could return daily, the source said.
About 20,000 sick and wounded Palestinians need treatment outside Gaza, the Gaza Health Ministry said. Gaza’s health system was decimated in the war, rendering advanced surgical procedures out of reach.
Israel and Egypt would vet people for exit and entry through the crossing, which would be supervised by EU border patrol agents, COGAT said. In addition to screenings at the crossing, Palestinians leaving and returning would be screened by Israel in the adjacent corridor, which remains under Israeli military control.
The crossing has been under a near complete closure since Israel seized it in May 2024, saying the step was part of a strategy to halt cross-border arms smuggling by Hamas. It was briefly opened for the evacuation of medical patients during a short-lived ceasefire last year.
Israel had resisted reopening the crossing, but the recovery of the remains of the last hostage in Gaza on Monday cleared the way to move forward.
A day later, Netanyahu said the crossing would soon open in a limited and controlled fashion.
Thousands of Palestinians inside Gaza are trying to leave the war-battered territory, while tens of thousands who fled the territory during the heaviest fighting say they want to return home.
The reopening is one of the first steps in the second phase of the ceasefire agreement, which includes challenging issues ranging from demilitarizing Gaza to putting in place an alternative government to oversee rebuilding the mostly destroyed enclave.
Israel’s focus is on disarming Hamas and destroying its remaining tunnels, Netanyahu said, adding that without these steps, there would be no reconstruction in Gaza.
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