Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt reopened on Sunday for the first time since the IDF captured it in May 2024, with a limited pedestrian pilot program.

“The Rafah crossing has reopened for movement of people only,” the Defense Ministry’s Coordinator of Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit said. “Today, a pilot is underway to test and assess the operation of the crossing. The movement of residents in both directions, entry and exit to and from Gaza, is expected to begin tomorrow.”

On Dec. 3, Israel offered to reopen the Rafah Crossing to allow the exit of Gaza residents, but Egypt said no unless it opened in both directions.

On Sunday, dozens of Egyptian Red Crescent ambulances entered the Gaza Strip to prepare for evacuating wounded and sick Palestinians, Sky News Arabic reported, adding that hospitals in northern Sinai were ready to receive patients.

An Israeli security official told the outlet that the trial opening was underway but it remained unclear whether Gaza residents would be allowed to cross, while vehicles carrying Palestinian officials were seen arriving on the Egyptian side ahead of expected operations on the Gaza side.

In a statement on Friday, COGAT said exit from and entry into Gaza via Rafah will be conducted in coordination with Egypt, following Israeli security clearance and under the supervision of a European Union monitoring mission, similar to a mechanism used in January 2025.

“The Israeli Defense Ministry unit said the return of Gaza residents from Egypt will be permitted only for those who left the enclave during the war and after Israeli security approval. The move is part of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire reached in October 2025 between Israel and Hamas after two years of war.

The Prime Minister’s Office announced on Jan. 25 that Israel had agreed to reopen Rafah after the IDF concluded “Operation Brave Heart” to recover the remains of Israel Police Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, which happened the following day.

In addition to identification and screening at the crossing by European monitors, an additional screening process will be carried out in a designated corridor operated by the Israeli defense establishment in an area under IDF control.

According to COGAT data, about 42,000 Gaza residents left the territory during the war, most of them medical patients seeking treatment abroad or dual nationals.

COGAT on Sunday highlighted humanitarian efforts over the past week, posting to X that, among other activities, 4,200 aid trucks entered the Strip and nearly 100 Gazans in need of medical care, along with their escorts, left the Strip on Jan. 26 through the Kerem Shalom Crossing to Israel and traveled on to Jordan via the Allenby Bridge.

“We will continue facilitating humanitarian aid into Gaza together with our international partners,” COGAT said.

The Israeli decision to reopen the Rafah Crossing was announced despite an upsurge in violence in the area. The IDF said on Friday that soldiers overnight identified eight terrorists emerging from underground infrastructure in eastern Rafah city, the southern Gaza Strip, prompting an airstrike that killed at least three of them.

“I am deeply concerned by what has taken place since Friday: Hamas armed operatives emerging from a tunnel in Rafah, Israeli strikes that tragically also killed civilians,” Nickolay Mladenov, chief executive officer of the Board of Peace, said in an X post Sunday.

“Such developments risk the hard-won progress under UNSCR 2803 and President Trump’s 20-Point Peace Plan. All must exercise restraint and uphold the ceasefire as the @NCAG prepares to assume civilian and security responsibilities, shifting Gaza’s trajectory from violence and destruction to recovery and reconstruction,” he continued.

“My office and I are working closely to support the Committee and find ways that prevent future incidents. We will need everyone’s full cooperation to make this possible.”

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