The Rafah border between Gaza and Egypt began a test phase on Sunday ahead of its planned reopening, with a limited number of Palestinians leaving the war-torn enclave and the completion of the first phase of a U.S.-brokered ceasefire plan.
The important crossing has been largely closed since Israel took over in May 2024, but a series of preparations have been made by the European Union, Egypt and other parties involved in the operation of the crossing, according to Israel’s Coordinator of Territorial Government Activities (COGAT).
COGAT said the intersection would only be open for “limited traffic for residents only,” but did not say by when residents would be allowed to pass. Ali Shas, head of the Palestinian Engineers Committee that is supposed to run Gaza, said on social media that the crossing would open in both directions on Monday.
Shas said when he previewed the crossing’s opening in mid-January that it “shows that Gaza is no longer closed to the future and to the world.” But the limited openings and restricted use of the crossing, which has seen truckloads of humanitarian aid brought in every day for years, means Rafah is far from fully operational.
An Israeli security official told CNN that 150 Palestinians will be allowed to leave Gaza per day, but only 50 will be allowed to enter the country. But the high cost of crossing the Rafah border (some Palestinians report paying thousands of dollars, but few can afford it), combined with lengthy bureaucratic and security procedures, means that few Palestinians can realistically expect to leave.
The full reopening of the Rafah crossing was part of the first phase of a US-brokered ceasefire agreement that took effect in mid-October. But Israel refused to open the crossing until all hostages, living and dead, were returned. The last hostage to die, Ran Jiviri, was returned to Israel last week.
Mr Gviri’s return and the reopening of the Rafah crossing mark the end of the first phase of the 20-point ceasefire agreement. The United States announced the start of the second phase of the agreement two weeks ago when President Donald Trump formally inaugurated the Peace Commission in Davos.
