The first group of Palestinian patients returning to the Gaza Strip arrived on Monday evening via the Rafah land crossing, after an arduous 19-hour journey that included long waits and intensive searches. Some were also interrogated by the Israeli occupation army, according to several people who spoke to Al Manassa.
Twelve patients, along with their companions, were able to return to their families in Gaza after the Rafah crossing was partially opened and they were allowed through.
Huda Al-Qarra, 57, from central Khan Younis, told Al Manassa the trip began at 3 am, when 50 patients and their companions headed to the crossing.
Al-Qarra said the returnees were divided among four buses, but only one bus was permitted to pass, carrying 12 patients, all women, older adults, and children. The passage of the others was postponed until Tuesday.
“The trip was long and hard. They only allowed us to carry one bag with clothes, and everything we had was confiscated on the Egyptian side because of instructions, as they told us,” she said.
Al-Qarra said she left Gaza for Egypt to receive treatment for her chronic illnesses in December 2023, before the Israeli occupation army took control of the Rafah crossing in May 2024 and decided to close it.
Sabah Al-Raqab, 33, told Al Manassa she had been accompanying her mother for medical treatment in Egypt and arrive there more than a year and a half ago. Regarding the return journey, she said, “The Egyptians treated us with full respect, but the procedures were long because of Israeli stalling, and most of our belongings were confiscated.”
The first group of Palestinian patients returns to Gaza from Egypt via Rafah crossing, Feb. 2, 2026Al-Raqab said the Palestinian side facilitated the returnees’ passage into Gaza, but described passing the Israeli checkpoint as “hell.”
“The army took me and my sick mother, and a third young woman too. They blindfolded us, chained our hands, and subjected us to interrogation on the spot,” she said.
Palestinians seeking to cross via Rafah are subjected to Israeli security screening at a facility set up by the Israeli occupation army near the crossing on the Palestinian side. The facility is equipped with sensors and metal detectors to screen each person individually.
“They asked us about things that had nothing to do with us, about the resistance and weapons, and they humiliated us. I was scared and didn’t know what to do. With the young woman, they asked her to work with them and keep in touch, to give them information, and she kept telling them she didn’t know anything,” Al-Raqab said.
According to al-Raqab, the Israeli occupation army released the three women after three hours of detention and psychological torture and allowed them to pass with the rest of the returnees. “Thank God, we arrived and reunited with the family after a long wait and suffering during the war,” she added.
On Tuesday morning, a second group of patients set off through the Rafah crossing. Forty-five patients and 90 companions left Al-Amal Hospital, part of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society in Khan Younis, to begin treatment abroad.
After the Israeli occupation army closed the Rafah crossing for a year and a half, Israel reopened it in both directions for Palestinians to exit and enter. The first outbound group left on Monday and included fewer than 10 patients, while the agreement stipulates the passage of 50 people in each direction.
Israel delayed approval of Rafah’s reopening during the first phase of the ceasefire agreement, linking it to the return of captives held in Gaza. The Israeli military later announced it had recovered the final body held in the Strip, clearing the way for implementation of the next phase and reopening the crossing.
