Gaza-Egypt border crossing to remain closed: Netanyahu
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu stated that the Rafah border gate between Gaza and Egypt will remain closed until further notice, adding that the reopening of the gate will depend on Hamas handing over the bodies of the dead hostages.
Netanyahu’s statement on Saturday came shortly after the Palestinian embassy in Egypt announced that the Rafah crossing, the main gateway for Gazans to leave and enter the area, would reopen for entry into Gaza on Monday.
Hamas said it would hand over the bodies of two more hostages later on Saturday at 22:00 local time; This means that 12 of the 28 bodies will be handed over to Israel as part of the US-brokered ceasefire and the hostage agreement reached between Israel and Hamas last week.
The dispute over the return of remains underscores the fragility of the ceasefire and still has the potential to derail the agreement, among other key issues included in US President Donald Trump’s 20-point plan to end the war.
As part of the deal, Hamas released all 20 living Israeli hostages it had held for two years in exchange for approximately 2,000 Palestinian detainees and convicted prisoners imprisoned in Israel.
However, Israel says Hamas has been too slow in handing over the bodies of hostages it is holding. The militant group has so far returned 10 of the 28 bodies and said it would take time to locate some bodies amid the massive destruction in Gaza.
The deal requires Israel to return the bodies of 360 Palestinian militants for dead Israeli hostages, and so far it has handed over 15 bodies for every Israeli body it has received.
Welfare has been largely closed since May 2024. The ceasefire agreement also includes increasing aid to the region, where hundreds of thousands of people were determined to be affected by famine in August, according to the IPC global hunger monitoring agency.
Israel, which cut off all supplies for 11 weeks in March, increased its aid to Gaza in July and has increased it further since the ceasefire.
An average of 560 metric tons of food per day had entered Gaza since the US-brokered ceasefire, but this was still well below the scale of needs, according to the UN World Food Programme.
Formidable obstacles remain to US President Donald Trump’s plan to end the war. Fundamental questions regarding the disarmament of Hamas and how to govern Gaza, the formation of an international “stabilization force” and steps towards the establishment of a Palestinian state have not yet been resolved.
