THE first medical evacuees from Gaza entered Egypt today as the Rafah crossing reopened under tight restrictions imposed by Israel.

About 20,000 Palestinian children and adults in need of medical care hope to leave Gaza through the crossing, according to Gaza health officials. 

Thousands of other Palestinians outside the territory are also hoping to enter and return home, though goods are not permitted to pass through.

Rafah had been closed since Israeli troops seized it in May 2024. 

An Egyptian official said that about 50 Palestinians were expected to cross in each direction on the first day of operations. 

The crossing is expected to operate for six hours a day and allow the exit of up to 150 people. 

Under the terms of the ceasefire, which came into effect in October, Israel’s military controls the area between Rafah and the zone where most Palestinians live. 

Rafah had been Gaza’s main crossing point before Israel’s war began, with the territory’s remaining crossings all shared with Israel.

Outside a Gaza hospital today, Rajaa Abu Mustafa waited as her 17-year-old son, Mohamed, prepared for evacuation. 

He was blinded by a gunshot wound to the eye last year while seeking food from aid trucks east of Khan Younis.

“We have been waiting for the crossing to open,” she said. “Now it’s opened and the health ministry called and told us that we will travel to Egypt for [his] treatment.”

Egyptian authorities said about 150 hospitals are ready to receive evacuated patients, while the Egyptian Red Crescent has prepared “safe spaces” on the Egyptian side of the crossing. 

Israel has barred patients from travelling to hospitals in the occupied West Bank and east Jerusalem since the war began.

Israel and Egypt will vet travellers passing through Rafah, which will be overseen by European Union border agents with a limited Palestinian presence. 

Egypt has repeatedly said the crossing must allow Palestinians to both enter and leave Gaza.

Violence continued across the coastal territory today as Israel carried on breaching ceasefire terms. 

Gaza hospital officials said a three-year-old child was killed when Israeli naval fire struck tents sheltering displaced people near Khan Younis. 

Israel’s military said it was looking into the incident.

More than 520 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began, according to Gaza’s health ministry.

The casualties, which Unicef said include more than 100 children, are among the over 71,800 Palestinians killed since the start of Israel’s invasion.

Meanwhile, Hamas spokesman Hazem Qassem said the group has completed “all necessary procedures and arrangements with governmental and administrative bodies” in Gaza for handover to the National Committee for the Administration of Gaza.

The body, headed by former Palestinian Authority deputy minister Ali Shaath, is due to take over day-to-day governance of the territory from Hamas under the terms of the ceasefire agreement and was expected to arrive in Gaza today through the reopened Rafah crossing.