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Israel announced Thursday that it will reopen the Rafah border crossing for people to travel between Gaza and Egypt for the first time since May 2024.
Israel’s Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT), which oversees humanitarian and civil efforts in Gaza, said the crossing “will open this coming Sunday (February 1st) in both directions, for limited movement of people only.”
“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 said.
“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,” it continued.
WITKOFF CELEBRATES ‘NEW DAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST’ AFTER FINAL ISRAELI HOSTAGE IS RETURNED FROM GAZA
An Egyptian military vehicle stands near the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, in Rafah, Egypt, on Aug. 6, 2025. (Amr Abdallah Dalsh/Reuters)
This will be the first opening of the Rafah crossing for people since Israel seized the area in May 2024, according to Reuters. Israeli forces captured the territory as part of an effort to prevent arms smuggling into Gaza by the terrorist group Hamas.
In early 2025, there was an evacuation of medical patients along the route during a temporary ceasefire, The Associated Press reported.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office had said Sunday that Israel agreed to a “limited reopening” of the crossing under President Donald Trump’s 20-point peace plan.
ISRAEL ANNOUNCES LIMITED REOPENING OF RAFAH CROSSING UNDER TRUMP’S 20-POINT PLAN
A truck carrying humanitarian aid at the Rafah border on the Egyptian side, in Rafah, Egypt, on Thursday, Jan. 29, 2026. (Reuters)
“As part of President Trump’s 20-point plan, Israel has agreed to a limited reopening of the Rafah Crossing for pedestrian passage only, subject to a full Israeli inspection mechanism,” the Office of the Prime Minister of Israel wrote.
The Prime Minister’s Office said the reopening was contingent on the return of all living hostages and what it described as a “100 percent effort” by Hamas to locate and return the remains of all deceased hostages.
Israeli soldiers drive past destroyed buildings in Rafah in the Gaza Strip on Sept. 13, 2024. (Sharon Aronowicz/AFP via Getty Images)
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Israel on Monday then confirmed that the remains of Staff Sgt. Ran Gvili, the last Israeli hostage held in Gaza, have been recovered and returned home after 842 days.
Fox News Digital’s Rachel Wolf and Ashley Carnahan contributed to this report.