Ambulances line up to enter the Egyptian gate of the Rafah crossing on the way to the Gaza Strip, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Rafah, Egypt. | Image Credit: AP
Gaza’s main border The crossing at Rafah reopens to Palestinians On Monday (February 2, 2026), preparations were underway at the main gateway to Israel, a war-torn enclave that has been largely closed for nearly two years.
Before the war, the Rafah border Crossing with Egypt was a direct point of departure Most Gazans are the main entry point for reaching the outside world and aid to the region. It has been largely closed since May 2024, and the Gazan side is under Israeli military control.
COGAT, the Israeli military unit that oversees humanitarian coordination, said the crossing would reopen to Gaza residents in both directions on foot only, and that its operation would be coordinated with Egypt and the European Union.
“Today, a pilot is underway to test and assess the operation of the crossing. Movement of residents in both directions, entering and leaving Gaza, is expected to begin tomorrow,” COGAT said in a statement.
A Palestinian official and a European source close to the EU mission confirmed the details. Egypt’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Strict security checks
Israel said the crossing would open under strict security checks only for Palestinians seeking to leave the war-torn enclave and for those who fled the fighting in the first months of the war to return.
Many of those expected to leave are sick and injured Gazans who require medical care abroad. The Palestinian Ministry of Health says 20,000 patients are waiting to leave Gaza.
An Israeli defense official said the crossing could hold 150-200 people in either direction. The official added that more people leave than return as patients go together with convoys.
At least 50 Palestinian patients will be processed on Sunday (February 1, 2026) to cross the Rafah into Egypt for treatment, two Egyptian officials said. About 200 people, the sick and their family members, crossed into Egypt every day in the first few days, officials said, while 50 people a day returned to Gaza.
Lists of Gazans set to pass through the crossing have been submitted by Egypt and approved by Israel, the official said.
Reopening the border crossing was a key requirement for the end of the first phase of US President Donald Trump’s plan Israel-Hamas war.
But a ceasefire that came into effect in October after two years of fighting has been repeatedly shaken by rounds of violence.
Israeli attacks in Gaza since the ceasefire have killed more than 500 Palestinians, local health officials say, and Palestinian militants have killed four Israeli soldiers, according to Israeli officials.
On Saturday (Jan 31, 2026), Israel launched some of its most intense airstrikes since the cease-fire, killing at least 30 people, which it said was in response to a Hamas violation of the cease-fire on Friday (Jan 30, 2026) when militants emerged from the Rafah tunnel.
The next steps in Mr. Trump’s plan for Gaza envision handing over governance to Palestinian technocrats, Hamas laying down its weapons and Israeli forces withdrawing from the territory, and an international force keeping the peace and rebuilding Gaza.
Hamas has so far rejected disarmament, and Israel has repeatedly indicated that if the Islamist militant group does not disarm peacefully, it will use force to do so.
Published – February 01, 2026 04:50 pm IST
