Gaza's Rafah Crossing Reopens, But Will Palestinians Be Able to Return?

Two years and four months—that's how long 65-year-old Abed El Halim Abo Askar has been waiting for a cancer operation that could save his life. Scheduled for surgery on October 10, 2023, his treatment was derailed when war erupted just three days earlier. In the first month of fighting, his 28-year-old daughter Shaima was killed alongside her husband and two daughters in an Israeli airstrike.

On Monday, Israel announced it would reopen the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt in a limited "pilot phase"—offering a lifeline to 22,000 wounded and sick Palestinians desperately awaiting medical care abroad. But the reopening comes with an uncomfortable reality: leaving Gaza might mean never being able to return.

The Impossible Choice

Israel's military agency COGAT said the crossing would operate in both directions for pedestrians only, coordinated with Egypt and the European Union. Initial operations will process approximately 200 people daily into Egypt, with 50 returning to Gaza each day. On the first day alone, 50 Palestinian patients are expected to cross into Egypt for treatment.

But the mood in Gaza is conflicted. "Palestinians want to leave, but at the same time, they're worried they won't be able to come back," reported Al Jazeera's Hani Mahmoud from Khan Younis. Residents say they would leave strictly for medical evacuation or education, with every intention of returning home.

Their fears aren't unfounded. According to Ismail al-Thawabta, director of Gaza's Government Media Office, about 80,000 Palestinians who left Gaza during the war are now seeking to return—highlighting the crossing's role as both escape route and potential trap.

A Healthcare System in Ruins

Abo Askar's son Ahmed captures the desperation: "Every day they say they would open the crossing, be patient. But nothing has happened since the start of the war. My father needs to do the operation, and we don't know what to do... Medicines are not available at all, and [there is] no capacity to do investigations because Israel destroyed all the hospitals."

The numbers tell a devastating story. Israeli attacks have killed more than 1,700 Palestinian healthcare workers, systematically dismantling Gaza's medical infrastructure. As London-based emergency doctor James Smith explains, this "created a profound dependency on international organizations"—a dependency that Israel now controls.

On Sunday, Israel delivered another blow, announcing it would terminate Doctors Without Borders (MSF) operations in Gaza after the organization failed to provide lists of its Palestinian staff. This follows December's decision to ban 37 aid organizations, including MSF, from working in Gaza starting March 1.

Ceasefire or Pause?

The Rafah reopening was a key requirement of President Donald Trump's "ceasefire" deal to end Israel's war on Gaza. But the truce has been anything but peaceful. Israeli forces killed at least three people on Sunday alone, following Saturday's attacks that claimed 31 lives. Since the "ceasefire" began, at least 511 Palestinians have been killed and 1,405 wounded.

Among Sunday's victims was 63-year-old Khaled Hammad Ahmed Dahleez, killed in a drone strike in northwest Rafah. Another Palestinian died in a drone attack in central Wadi Gaza.

The continued violence raises questions about the nature of this "ceasefire"—is it genuine peace or merely a tactical pause?

The Weaponization of Aid

MSF's forced departure represents what Smith calls "Israel's systematic weaponisation and instrumentalisation of aid." By requiring detailed information about Palestinian employees and controlling which organizations can operate, Israel maintains leverage over humanitarian assistance.

This dynamic extends beyond medical care. The crossing's limited capacity—200 people leaving versus 50 returning daily—creates a bottleneck that could force permanent displacement under the guise of humanitarian assistance.