Gazans begin crossing into Egypt after months-long Rafah closure

Dan Williams, Bloomberg News on Feb 2, 2026

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Dozens of Palestinians traveled between Gaza and Egypt for the first time since the early months of Israel’s war with Hamas as the border reopened in accordance with October’s ceasefire, albeit with stringent security checks.

Foot traffic through the Rafah crossing on Monday included Palestinians seeking medical treatment abroad for war-related injuries and displaced residents returning to the devastated enclave, as U.S. President Donald Trump seeks to build on a fragile truce with longer-term reconstruction.

Israeli forces seized Rafah during the fighting, accusing Hamas of using the area to smuggle weapons. Inspections at the crossing will be “100% stringent to ensure that no bad elements come in,” Avi Dichter, a member of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s security Cabinet, told Galey Israel radio in an interview.

“We’re less worried about those going from Gaza to Egypt,” he said.

Egypt will initially allow 50 people a day to cross in each direction, Al Qahera News reported. Israel proceeded with the reopening after Hamas returned the remains of its last hostage from Gaza.

Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the West, criticized the cap, saying at least 15,000 injured Palestinians needed treatment outside Gaza and as many as 20,000 others were in Egypt waiting to return.

Nevertheless, the opening of the crossing — and the fact that Israel agreed to reopen it under these terms — is a step that can be built upon, Hamas official Taher al-Nunu told Al Jazeera.

An European Union delegation is monitoring transit at the Rafah crossing, while Israel is, for now, restricting aid deliveries into Gaza to crossings it controls.

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—With assistance from Fadwa Hodali, John Bowker and Raeedah Wahid.