The crossing, which connects Gaza with Egypt and is the only border point not controlled by Israel, reopened under a United States brokered ceasefire agreement that ended the war between Israel and Hamas in October. Rafah serves as a crucial gateway for humanitarian aid and medical evacuations.
Operations at the crossing will remain restricted, with Israel and Egypt expected to cap the number of travellers. Israel will also enforce strict security checks on Palestinians entering or leaving Gaza.
An Israeli security official told Reuters that European monitoring teams have arrived at the crossing. The European Union Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) will manage the Palestinian side, submitting lists of people seeking to leave Gaza to Egypt for security clearance.
Egyptian authorities will also provide lists of Palestinians wishing to enter Gaza, who will be approved after vetting, according to Israeli media reports.
An Egyptian official said around 50 Palestinians would be allowed to cross in each direction on the first day, according to the Associated Press.
The Israeli army has set up a checkpoint named “Regavim” outside the Rafah crossing in an area under its military control. Soldiers there will verify identities using intelligence-approved lists and conduct detailed searches of belongings, according to the Times of Israel.
Israel seized control of the Rafah crossing in May 2024, cutting off a major route for wounded and sick Palestinians seeking medical treatment abroad. Although a few thousand people have been allowed to leave Gaza for medical care over the past year, the United Nations says thousands more still require urgent treatment.
Al Jazeera’s Hani Mahmoud, reporting from Khan Younis, said more than 20,000 Palestinians are in desperate need of immediate medical evacuation.
After Israel announced plans to reopen the crossing last week, ambulances gathered on the Egyptian side of the border in preparation to evacuate patients.
Palestinian officials estimate that around 100,000 Palestinians have fled Gaza since the war began, most during its first nine months.
