Israel Opens Gaza's Main Gate In Rafah, Waiting For Thousands Of Palestinians To Need Treatment

An aerial photo showing the destruction in Rafah following the withdrawal of Israeli troops and when the ceasefire was imposed, Gaza (doc UNRWA-Ashraf Amra)

JAKARTA - Israel announced on Wednesday December 3 that Gaza's main gate in Rafah will open for the next few days.

The opening of access in Israel's unilaterally qualified Palestinian territory allows thousands of Gazans who need medical treatment out through Egypt to seek treatment.

The Israeli military agency, which oversees humanitarian affairs (COGAT), said the opening of Gaza's main gate in Rafah would be coordinated with Egypt, under the supervision of European Union (EU) missions, similar to the mechanism used during the previous Gaza ceasefire agreed in January 2025.

Based on 20 points in the ceasefire proposal between Hamas and Israel initiated by US President Donald Trump, the crossing will open in both directions.

Thousands Of Palestinians Need Treatment

Prior to the war, Rafah's crossing was the only direct exit point for most Palestinians in Gaza to reach the outside world. That point is also the main entry point for humanitarian aid into Gaza. The crossing was then often closed unilaterally during Israel's invasion of Gaza.

According to the United Nations, at least 16,500 patients in Gaza need medical treatment outside Gaza. Several Gazans managed to go for treatment abroad via Israel.

"We have been waiting for the opening of Rafah for months," said an entrepreneur in Gaza, Tamer Al-Burai, who needs treatment abroad due to respiratory problems.

"Finally, the rest of me and thousands of other patients may have had the opportunity to get proper treatment," Burai told Reuters by telephone from Gaza.

Israel closed the main gate of Gaza in Rafah in both directions since the ceasefire took effect in October 2025. Israel argued Hamas must first comply with a ceasefire agreement to repatriate all hostages still in Gaza, both alive and dead.

Hamas is known to have repatriated all 20 hostages who are still alive with repatriations of about 2,000 Palestinians detained and inmates, but two other prisoners who have died an Israeli police officer and a Thai agricultural worker are still in Gaza.