DAVOS: Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt will reopen next week after remaining largely closed during the Israel-Hamas war, the Palestinian technocrat leader backed by Washington to administer the enclave announced on Thursday.
Ali Shaath made the announcement via video link at an event in Davos hosted by US President Donald Trump, who gathered international leaders to formally launch a “Board of Peace,” initially aimed at consolidating Gaza’s ceasefire.
One of the key unresolved provisions of the ceasefire—brokered by Trump in October—has been the reopening of Gaza’s main gateway to the outside world to allow the movement of Palestinians.“I am pleased to announce the Rafah crossing will open next week in both directions.
For Palestinians in Gaza, Rafah is more than a gate. It is a lifeline and a symbol of opportunity,” Shaath said.“Opening Rafah signals that Gaza is no longer closed to the future and to war,” he added.
There was no immediate comment from Israel, which has controlled the Rafah crossing since 2024. Under the ceasefire arrangement, Israel retains control over more than half of Gaza, including areas adjacent to the crossing, while Hamas controls the remainder of the territory.
Israeli strikes kill five
Despite the ceasefire, violence continued in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, with health officials reporting that Israeli air strikes killed five people. There was no immediate Israeli response to the reported strikes, which have further strained the October truce. Israel has continued to conduct air and artillery attacks in Gaza.
Officials at Al Shifa Hospital, Gaza’s largest medical facility, said four Palestinians were killed by Israeli tank shelling in the Zeitoun neighbourhood of eastern Gaza City. A fifth person was killed by Israeli fire in Khan Yunis in the south.
A day earlier, Israeli strikes killed 11 people, including two boys and three journalists, according to health officials.
On Thursday, Palestinians held funerals for the three journalists. Press advocacy groups said they were using a drone to film tents sheltering displaced families when they were killed.
US sanctions on NGOs
Separately, Hamas condemned as “unjust” a decision by the United States to impose sanctions on several Palestinian organisations accused by Washington of links to the group.
On Wednesday, the US Treasury Department sanctioned six non-profit organisations operating in Gaza, stating they claimed to provide medical assistance to civilians but were in fact supporting Hamas’s military wing.
The US also imposed sanctions on a group of Palestinians involved in civilian flotillas aimed at breaking Israel’s naval blockade of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid.
According to the Treasury Department, the Popular Conference for Palestinians Abroad was a key organiser of the flotillas and was “clandestinely acting on behalf of Hamas.”“We view these decisions as unjust and oppressive,” Hamas said in a statement, alleging the sanctions were driven by Israel and framed as part of a campaign against the Palestinian “national cause.”
The sanctions freeze any US-based assets of the organisations and criminalise financial transactions with them. Hamas called on Washington to reverse the decision.
