Gaza’s ‘lifeline’ reopened
Last Updated on February 2, 2025 6:26 am
Gaza’s lifeline Rafah border crossing reopened after 9 months. The initiative is being taken to improve medical care for sick and injured Palestinian patients in the besieged territory. This will allow Palestinians to travel to Egypt very easily. Egyptian television showed a Palestinian Red Cross ambulance approaching the crossing gate. Several children were also taken out on stretchers and transferred to ambulances on the Egyptian side. Al Jazeera.
The reopening of the Rafah crossing is a significant development. It is expected to further strengthen the ceasefire agreement signed between Israel and Hamas earlier this month. Israel agreed to reopen the crossing after the release of the last surviving female prisoners held by Hamas in Gaza.
Earlier, on January 19, a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect. Israel launched a war in Gaza on October 7, 2023, after a surprise attack by the Palestinian group Hamas on Israel. More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli attacks in the more than 15-month-long war. The Rafah crossing point is the only border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
Earlier on Saturday, Hamas released three Israeli prisoners in Gaza and more than 180 Palestinians held in Israeli prisons were released. Meanwhile, the director of hospitals at the Gaza Health Ministry, Mohammed Zakout, said that preparations were being made to evacuate more than 6,000 patients for treatment abroad. However, more than 12,000 patients were also reported to need urgent treatment. Meanwhile, after some delay, Hamas also released a third hostage.
According to the terms of the ceasefire in Gaza, 33 hostages were supposed to be released in the first phase. The hostages are being released in several phases according to those terms. In a follow-up, the Palestinian armed group released three hostages on Saturday. Hamas handed over Jordan Baybas and French-Israeli Ofer Calderon to the Red Cross in the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis. They were then taken to Israel. Hours later, American-Israeli Keith Siegel was released at the Gaza City seaport.
Jordan Baybas is the father of the two youngest hostages. His son Kafi was just 9 months old when Hamas-led gunmen abducted them on October 7, 2023. His other son, Ariel, was four. Hamas claimed in November 2023 that the two children and their mother, Shiri, were killed in an Israeli airstrike. No further information has been available about them since. They were all kidnapped at the same time. Hamas said Israel was set to release 182 Palestinian prisoners in exchange for the hostages released on Saturday.
Hamas launched an attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, infiltrating the territory. Israel claims that 1,200 people were killed and at least 250 were taken hostage in the attack. Tel Aviv launched a military operation in Gaza in response to the attack. More than 47,000 Palestinians have been killed in the nearly 15-month-long occupation, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.