Israel confirms that it will open the Rafah border crossing on Sunday but will only allow “limited circulation”

After almost two years of blockade due to the invasion of Gaza, Israel has confirmed that on Sunday it will open the Rafah crossing, on the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt. The measure, which now seems definitive after several announcements that never came to fruition, will allow the entry and exit of people from the Palestinian enclave, although with nuances.

COGAT, the military arm that manages civil affairs in the occupied Palestinian territories, explained in a statement this Friday that only “limited movement of people” will be allowed. The crossing had been closed since May 2024 and Benjamin Netanyahu’s government had linked its opening to the delivery of the bodies of all the hostages kidnapped by Hamas.

Both Israel and Egypt will check the entry and exit of people through the crossing, which will be monitored by European Union border patrol officers. Palestinians who left the Gaza Strip after the invasion of Israeli troops will be able to return after obtaining a security clearance from Tel Aviv.

The Gazan side of the border crossing has been under Israeli military control since the offensive against southern Gaza in May 2024, although it should have reopened in the initial phase of the peace plan sponsored by Donald Trump and signed last October.

“Entry and exit to the Gaza Strip through the Rafah crossing will be allowed in coordination with Egypt, prior security authorization from Israel and under the supervision of the European Union mission, similar to the mechanism implemented in January 2025,” details the COGAT announcement.

However, the text states that, in addition to the identification control by the European Union mission, there will be a second corridor where an “additional control and identification process” to everyone who crosses, “operated by the defense establishment in an area under control” of the Israeli Army.

According to Israel, the return of the numerous Gazans who left the Strip for Egypt will be allowed “only after Israeli security authorization” and in coordination with Cairo, which makes humanitarian groups fear that, in reality, the reopening of this crossing It will help Israel to further empty the Strip of Palestinians.

Before the Israeli war offensive that has devastated Gaza, Rafah was a vital crossing for the entry of goods. Additionally, the World Health Organization says there are more than 16,500 sick and injured people who need to leave Gaza for urgent medical care.

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