Israel to reopen Gaza-Egypt Border in days

 Israel has said that it will reopen the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt within days for travelers on foot, a move that would allow Palestinians who fled the enclave during the two-year war to return home for the first time.

Aid officials said they hoped that the reopening of the border crossing would also allow them to evacuate those in Gaza who need medical care abroad, thought to number more than 18,000 people, according to the World Health Organization.

In a social media post early Monday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s office said that the border crossing, near the city of Rafah, would reopen after the completion of a search in Gaza for the remains of the last captive yet to be returned to Israel.

Later on Monday, the Israeli military announced that it had at last found the remains of the captive, Master Sgt. Ran Gvili, a police officer shot during the Hamas-led attack on Oct. 7, 2023, after months of searches in Gaza.

Israel agreed to allow the Rafah crossing to reopen as part of the ceasefire deal struck in October. But Israeli leaders demanded that Hamas first return the remains of all deceased Israelis and foreign nationals in Gaza.

Now, with Gvili’s body back in Israel, that mission was complete.

Israel’s decision to reopen the border — where both Israel and Egypt are expected to impose tight scrutiny over who crosses — advances the fragile ceasefire with Hamas. Yet the next steps for implementing President Donald Trump’s plan for Gaza, which include disarming Hamas and deploying an international force there, are mired in uncertainty.

At least 100,000 Palestinians have left Gaza since the beginning of the war, according to Palestinian officials. Now, many of them must decide whether to return to the enclave, most of which lies in ruins after two years of Israeli bombardment.