&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Israel to open Rafah Crossing, let authorised Gazans enter Egypt")
Israel announced on Wednesday that it will reopen the Rafah Border Crossing in the coming days and let Palestinians exit from the Gaza Strip to Egypt. However, Cairo denied it was coordinating with Jerusalem on renewing operations at the facility. Israel’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), the Defence Ministry body that oversees the flow of people and goods to and from Gaza, said the step is “in accordance with the ceasefire agreement and the directives of the political leadership.”
COGAT said that Palestinians will be able to leave Gaza via the Rafah Crossing in coordination with Egypt, after Israeli security approval, and under the supervision of a European Union delegation.
An Israeli official said all Palestinians who wish to exit Gaza will be able to leave through Rafah if Egypt agrees to receive them, but the crossing won’t be open for people who want to return to Gaza. The official said the EU still had to make some adjustments to logistics before the crossing could open.
Media reports said Egypt’s State Information Service denied that the country is coordinating with Israel to reopen the crossing.
An Egyptian official cited by Al-Qahera news said any agreement to open the Rafah Crossing will see it open to traffic in both directions, as per US President Donald Trump’s Gaza ceasefire plan.
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As per the US-brokered hostage-release ceasefire deal that came into effect in October, the crossing has to be opened in the first phase for medical evacuations and for travel to and from the Gaza Strip.
Israel had said that the crossing would remain closed until Hamas fulfills its part in the deal. Hamas has still not returned the bodies of two hostages, police Master Sgt. Ran Gvili and Thai national Sudthisak Rinthalak, held in Gaza since October 7, 2023.
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On Tuesday night, the Red Cross handed over the remains of a body purported to be a hostage to the Israeli military. After forensic testing and identification, Israel said the remains were not a match with either of the two men.
Hamas announced on Wednesday that it would hand over the body of a deceased hostage to Israel at 5 pm after it was found in the northern Gaza Strip during a joint search with Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s al-Quds Brigades.
The Rafah Crossing was shut by Egypt after Israeli forces seized the Gaza side in May 2024, but was reopened in early 2025 during a short-lived ceasefire.
At least 16,500 patients in Gaza are in need of medical care outside of the enclave, while some managed to leave for medical treatment abroad through Israel.
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For a long time, the crossing was the main exit point for Palestinians from Gaza who were authorized to leave the narrow strip of land, which has been under Israeli-Egyptian blockade since 2007, aimed at preventing terror groups from smuggling in weapons.
