The Rafah crossing reopened to allow stranded Palestinians to return, even as Hamas accuses Israel of violating the fragile ceasefire mechanisms.
Following a reported two-year closure, the Rafah crossing saw significant movement as stranded Palestinians and patients returned to Gaza from Egypt. Concurrently, Israel released several Palestinian detainees to central Gaza hospitals.
Despite these humanitarian movements, Hamas issued strong statements accusing Israel of violating the agreed-upon ceasefire mechanisms. Arabic and Hebrew sources report Hamas's allegations that Israel is maintaining strict control over the crossing, engaging in physical and psychological abuse of returnees, and endangering the lives of medical evacuees by capping daily travel quotas.
While the physical reopening of the border is acknowledged as a relief, the overarching narrative in the Arab press is dominated by allegations of bad faith, systemic abuse, and severe restrictions imposed by Israel.