Israel has said it will reopen Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt only after completing an operation to recover the body of the last remaining Israeli hostage believed to be in the enclave, further delaying movement through Gaza’s sole gateway to the outside world.
In a statement late on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said the crossing would open for the passage of people only after Israeli forces conclude a “targeted operation” aimed at locating the remains of police officer Ran Gvili. All other living hostages and the bodies of deceased captives held by Palestinian militant groups have already been returned, the statement said.
The Rafah crossing had been expected to reopen earlier under the initial phase of a ceasefire reached in October between Israel and Hamas, which forms part of a broader U.S.-backed plan by President Donald Trump to end the war. However, Israel later made the reopening conditional on the return of all hostages and what it described as a “100% effort” by Hamas to account for those who had died in captivity.
According to the Israeli military, forces have launched a focused operation in northern Gaza based on “several intelligence leads” regarding the possible location of Gvili’s remains. Netanyahu’s office said the military is exhausting all available intelligence to recover the body, adding that the Rafah crossing would be reopened once the operation is concluded.
“The Israeli military “is currently conducting a focused operation to exhaust all of the intelligence that has been gathered in the effort to locate and return the fallen hostage, Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, of blessed memory,” Netanyahu’s office said in a statement.
The crossing, which is effectively the only route in or out of Gaza for most of the territory’s more than two million residents, has been under Israeli military control on the Gaza side since 2024. Its prolonged closure has further constrained humanitarian access and civilian movement.
On Thursday, Ali Shaath, head of a US-backed transitional Palestinian committee set up to temporarily administer Gaza, said the Rafah crossing was expected to open this week. That timeline now appears uncertain following Israel’s latest announcement.
Netanyahu’s office said the limited reopening would be carried out under strict conditions. “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,” it said.
Washington announced earlier this month that the plan had entered its second phase, under which Israel is expected to withdraw troops further from Gaza and Hamas is due to yield control of the territory’s administration.
Meanwhile, sources told Reuters last week that Israel is seeking to restrict the number of Palestinians entering Gaza through the Egypt border, with the aim of allowing more people to leave the enclave than return, a move likely to deepen concerns over displacement and access for Gaza’s population.
Melissa Enoch
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