Jerusalem — An Israeli tank brigade took control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt on Tuesday, officials said, pushing ahead with an offensive on the southern city even as ceasefire negotiations with Hamas it remains on a knife's edge.
The move comes after hours of whiplash the Israel-Hamas war, with the militant group on Monday saying it accepted an Egyptian-Qatar-brokered ceasefire proposal. Israel, for its part, insisted that the agreement did not meet its basic demands. The high-stakes diplomatic moves and the military exercise left alive a glimmer of hope – but barely – for a deal that could bring at least a pause in the 7-month war that has ravaged the Gaza Strip.
Israel's 401st Brigade entered the Rafah crossing early this morning, the Israeli military said, taking “operational control” of the crucial crossing. It is the main route of aid in and out of the besieged enclave for those who may flee to Egypt. Israel has fully controlled all access into and out of Gaza since the war began.
Images released by the Israeli army showed a tank entering the pass. Details in the video matched the known features of the crossing and showed Israeli flags flying from tanks that took over the area.
The Israeli military claimed it seized the crossing after receiving information that it was being “used for terrorist purposes”. The military did not immediately provide evidence to support the claim, although it alleged that the area around the crossing had been used to launch a mortar attack that killed four Israeli soldiers and wounded others near the Kerem Shalom crossing.
The army also said ground troops and airstrikes targeted suspected Hamas positions in Rafah.
Hatem Khaled / REUTERS
Reuters news agency cites Palestinian health officials as saying 20 Palestinians were killed and several others wounded in attacks that hit at least four homes.
Wael Abu Omar, a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority for crossings, acknowledged that Israeli forces had seized the crossing and had closed the facility for the time being. He said the strikes had been targeting the area around the pass since Monday.
A spokesman for the Egyptian Foreign Ministry declined to immediately comment on the Israeli seizure. Egypt previously warned that any Rafah dam could see Palestinians flee across the border, a scenario that could threaten a 1979 peace accord with Israel that has been a linchpin of regional security.
The offensive raised again the risks of an all-out Israeli assault on Rafah, a move the United States strongly opposes and which aid groups warn would be disastrous for some 1.4 million Palestinians that take refuge there.
Egyptian officials said the proposal called for a multi-stage ceasefire, starting with a limited release of hostages and a partial withdrawal of Israeli troops from Gaza. The two sides will also negotiate a “permanent calm” that would lead to the full release of the hostages and a further Israeli withdrawal from the territory, they said.
An Israeli official who spoke on condition of anonymity told Reuters that the proposal approved by Hamas was a watered-down version of an Egyptian offer that had aspects Israel could not accept. “This would appear to be an oddity intended to make Israel appear to be the party refusing a deal,” the Israeli official said.
Hamas sought clearer guarantees for its key demand for an end to the war and a full withdrawal from Israel in exchange for the release of all hostages, but it was unclear if any changes were made.
Israeli leaders have repeatedly rejected that commitment, vowing to maintain their campaign until Hamas is destroyed after its October 7 attack on Israel that triggered the war.
Reuters reports that Qatar's foreign ministry said its delegation would go to Cairo on Tuesday to resume indirect talks between Israel and Hamas.
