A new group of patients and their companions left Gaza for Egypt on Thursday through the Rafah crossing to receive treatment abroad, after patient movement resumed following a three-day halt triggered by the European Union mission’s suspension of operations in protest over the Israeli army’s arrest of a man returning to Gaza.
The resumption highlights the fragility of medical evacuations through Rafah, where Israeli controls have repeatedly disrupted travel. No information has been announced so far about the fate of the detained man or the reasons for his arrest.
Raed Al-Nims, spokesperson for the Palestine Red Crescent Society, told Al Manassa that the society’s teams helped evacuate 17 patients and 30 companionsafter preparing them at the society’s Medical Rehabilitation Hospital in Khan Younis ahead of departure.
He said Red Crescent teams completed all procedures needed to ensure the patients’ and companions’ safety in coordination with the World Health Organization, adding that the society continues to prepare patients and facilitate their transfer abroad for treatment.
The disruption came after the Israeli army arrested a man on Sunday evening while he was returning to Gaza through the crossing.
The Israeli army continues to impose strict restrictions on Palestinians crossing via Rafah, including intensive searches, handcuffing travelers, and subjecting people, including women, the elderly, and children, to psychological questioning.
Evacuation of a new group of patients and companions from Gaza via the Rafah crossing to Egypt, March 26, 2026Palestinians pass through an Israeli security point equipped with sensors and metal detectors, where they are questioned about the resistance and events inside Gaza before being allowed to cross, according to previous testimony from returnees.
Most luggage is confiscated, and travelers are restricted in what personal belongings they can carry, making journeys longer and harder and turning passage through the crossing into an exhausting, complicated experience, especially amid repeated closures and exclusive Israeli control over its opening and closing the crossing based on security and political conditions.
The EU Border Assistance Mission at Rafah was established in 2005 to support implementation of the Agreement on Movement and Access between the Israeli occupation government and the Palestinian Authority, providing a neutral third-party presence at the crossing.
After Hamas took control of Gaza in 2007, the European mission suspended its work at Rafah. It resumed operations in January 2025 after a ceasefire between Hamas and the occupation was announced, then halted work again when Israel resumed its war of genocide in Gaza in March of that year.
After a second ceasefire agreement was reached between Hamas and the occupation in October 2025, the mission resumed intermittent operations depending on security conditions controlled by the Israeli army.
