Israel to open Gaza Strip’s Rafah crossing with Egypt
Israel will reopen the Rafah border crossing on Sunday so people can travel between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, a government agency said; This will be the first de facto opening of the single route into and out of Palestinian territory since May 2024.
COGAT, the Israeli government agency that coordinates civilian policy in the region, did not say how many of the Gaza Strip’s more than two million people would be allowed to cross the border per day.
“The return of Egyptian residents to the Gaza Strip will be allowed, in coordination with Egypt, only for residents who left Gaza during the war and only after prior security clearance by Israel,” COGAT said.
📢UPDATE: In accordance with the ceasefire agreement and the directive of the political echelon, the Rafah Gate will be opened in both directions next Sunday, February 1, for limited movement of people only. Exit and entry from the Gaza Strip via Rafah… pic.twitter.com/jp8g3dP3Al— COGAT (@cogatonline) January 30, 2026
COGAT said both Israel and Egypt will screen individuals for exit and entry through the crossing, which will be inspected by European Union border patrol officers.
In addition to screening at the crossing, outgoing and returning Palestinians will also be screened by Israel in the adjacent corridor, which remains under Israeli military control.
Israel captured the border crossing in May 2024, nearly nine months after the start of the Gaza Strip war.
Reopening the center was a key requirement as part of the first phase of US President Donald Trump’s plan to halt fighting between Israel and Hamas militants following a ceasefire reached in October.
Israel had said it would reopen the gate after retrieving the body of the last Israeli hostage in the Gaza Strip this week.
Reuters had previously reported that Israel wanted to restrict the number of Palestinians entering the strip at its border crossing with Egypt to ensure more people were allowed out than entering.
Egypt did not accept this.
A source familiar with the matter said that the crossing will be opened despite ongoing discussions between Egypt and Israel on the issue and that Israel wants to allow about 150 people to come back per day.
The opening will only allow people to pass through, although the Gaza Strip continues to need vital aid, which humanitarian organizations say is hampered by Israeli restrictions.
“Many people in Gaza are still living under rubble without basic services and trying to stay warm in harsh winter conditions,” International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) president Mirjana Spoljaric said on Friday. he said.
He called for easing restrictions on “dual-use” products such as water pipes and generators that are “essential to repairing the basic infrastructure people rely on.”
Israel inspects trucks heading to the Gaza Strip, stopping items it deems to have potential “dual use” (civilian or military), under a policy that long predates the Oct. 7 Hamas attack on Israel and the ensuing war.
The region has been devastated by two years of Israeli aggression; this attack left much of the strip in ruins and displaced nearly the entire population.
with DPA
