Rafah Border Crossing

Rafah Border Crossing معبر رفح
Rafah Crossing Point
Coordinates	31°14′55″N 34°15′33″E / 31.24858°N 34.25923°E / 31.24858; 34.25923
Crosses	Gaza–Egypt border
Locale	Rafah, Egypt Rafah, Palestine
Maintained by	IAA (until 2005) EUBAM (2005–2007) Border Guard Corps  Israel Defense Forces (current control)[1]
Location

The Rafah Border Crossing (Arabic: معبر رفح, romanized: Ma`bar Rafaḥ) or Rafah Crossing Point is the sole crossing point between Egypt and Palestine's Gaza Strip.

The Rafah crossing was opened by Israel after the 1979 peace treaty and remained under Israeli control until 2005, when it was transferred to Egyptian, Palestinian Authority, and EU control, giving Palestinians partial control of an international border for the first time. In 2007, after Hamas seized Gaza, the EU withdrew, and Israel imposed a complete blockade, effectively sealing Gaza. In the same year, Egypt closed the Rafah crossing. Since then, the Rafah crossing has only opened intermittently for Palestinian movement.^[2]

Under a 2007 agreement between Egypt and Israel, Egypt controls the crossing but imports through the Rafah crossing require Israeli approval.^[3] Israel took control of the Rafah Border Crossing on May 7, 2024, during Gaza war and withdrew in Jan 2025 as part of ceasefire agreement. ^[4][5]