Rafah Crossing Opens With Certain Restrictions

The Rafah crossing at the Gaza-Egypt border has officially resumed operations after nearly a year of being closed. This is reported by The Times of Israel.

On February 1, a systems verification and testing day was held at the crossing, where a group of Palestinian representatives and EU observers are stationed.

The crossing is open only for Palestinian pedestrians from Gaza, not for trucks supplying aid. It remains unclear how many Palestinians have crossed through the border checkpoint so far, although it is anticipated that numbers will be limited in the initial days of the crossing's reopening.

All Palestinians wishing to enter Gaza or exit the enclave must receive approval from Egypt, which is required to send the names to Israel's Shin Bet internal security service for permission.

Israel will remotely monitor the exit of Gaza residents to Egypt. Israeli officers in the control room will verify that the names of those leaving Gaza are included on an approved list through facial recognition software before opening the checkpoint gate.

However, entry from Egypt into Gaza will incorporate a security check conducted by Israel. Those Palestinians will arrive at an Israeli Defense Forces checkpoint after passing through the Rafah crossing. Only after that will they be allowed to continue their journey into the areas controlled by Hamas in Gaza.

Despite the reopening of the crossing, Israel still refuses to allow foreign journalists to enter Gaza.

According to Al Jazeera, a statement issued by Egypt’s Ministry of Health mentioned that 150 hospitals across the country are prepared to receive Palestinian patients and casualties that need to be evacuated from Gaza through the Rafah crossing.

Kaja Kallas, the European Union's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, described the opening of the Rafah crossing as a positive step in a post on X, adding that the commission's special mission there is to monitor the operations of border crossings and provide support to Palestinian border guards.

The crossing had been closed in March 2025 after a violation of a ceasefire agreement reached in January.