Khaled Yousef and Ahmed Asmar
31 January 2025•Update: 01 February 2025
JERUSALEM
The Israeli army withdrew from the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt on Friday in accordance with the terms of the cease-fire agreement, which went into effect on January 19.
According to Israeli Army Radio, the army handed over the crossing to an international force from the European Union (EU) in preparation for its reopening later on Friday.
The radio, which quoted a security source without mentioning his name, noted that the Israeli army has redeployed its forces in an area along the Gaza-Egypt border.
Besides the EU mission, the source said Palestinians from the Ramallah-based Palestinian Authority will run the crossing from the Palestinian side, with the role being to stamp existing permits from Gaza.
The broadcaster's correspondent, Doron Kadosh, said 50 wounded Palestinians will be allowed every day to travel in addition to three escorts to each injured, totaling 200 people every day.
He added that all names of wounded people and their escorts will be checked by the Israeli general security service Shin Bet, along with Egyptian approval on the names.
The EU on Friday resumed its Rafah border crossing mission connecting the southern Gaza Strip to Egypt, including for Palestinians needing medical care.
“Europe is here to help: the EU’s civilian border mission deploys today to the Rafah Crossing at the request of the Palestinians and the Israelis,” EU foreign policy chief Kaja Kallas announced on X.
The Palestinian Health Ministry also confirmed that the crossing would open on Saturday for the first batch of wounded people to leave Gaza.
It added that their travel is planned in collaboration with the World Health Organization.
The Rafah crossing, a vital route for humanitarian aid into Gaza, has been closed since May 2024 after Israel’s ground offensive in the southern city of Rafah.
On Jan. 19, a ceasefire agreement and prisoner exchange between Hamas and Israel went into effect, initially lasting 42 days, during which negotiations will continue for subsequent phases of the deal. The agreement is mediated by Egypt and Qatar, with support from the US.
Israel’s genocidal war has killed more than 47,400 Palestinians, most of them women and children, and injured more than 111,000 since Oct. 7, 2023.
The Israeli onslaught on Gaza has left more than 11,000 people missing, with widespread destruction and a humanitarian crisis that has claimed the lives of many elderly people and children in one of the worst global humanitarian disasters ever.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants in November last year for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
