In accordance with the ceasefire deal, Israel will reopen the Rafah Crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt for pedestrian traffic in both directions on Sunday, the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories says, APA reports, citing The Times of Israel.
“Exit from and entry into the Gaza Strip via the Rafah Crossing will be permitted in coordination with Egypt, following prior security clearance of individuals by Israel, and under the supervision of the European Union mission, similar to the mechanism implemented in January 2025,” COGAT says in a statement.
“The return of residents from Egypt to the Gaza Strip will be permitted, in coordination with Egypt, for residents who left Gaza during the course of the war only, and only after prior security clearance by Israel,” COGAT says, adding that “in addition to initial identification and screening at the Rafah Crossing by the European Union mission, an additional screening and identification process will be conducted at a designated corridor, operated by the defense establishment in an area under IDF control.”
According to data from COGAT, some 42,000 Gazans left the Strip during the war, the vast majority of them patients seeking medical treatment abroad or dual citizens.
This week, The Times of Israel reported that all Gazan Palestinians seeking to enter or leave the Strip will be required to have Egyptian approval, and Egypt was to send the names to Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security service for clearance. Israeli officials said each name would be looked at individually, and if any top terror commanders seek to leave Gaza, they would be denied.
A team of Palestinian Authority representatives and monitors from the European Union stationed at the Rafah crossing will be tasked with conducting security screenings at the crossing for those leaving the Strip.
Israel will only supervise the exit of Gazans to Egypt remotely. From a control room, Israeli officers, using facial recognition software, will verify that those leaving the Strip are on the list of approved names, and open up a gate at the crossing to allow them through.
The entry into Gaza from Egypt will, however, include an Israeli security screening, as those Palestinians will arrive at an IDF checkpoint after crossing through the Rafah Crossing. Only afterward will they be permitted to continue toward the Hamas-controlled areas of Gaza.
