EU approves reactivation of monitoring mission at Rafah crossing

European Union foreign ministers agreed on Monday to resume monitoring at the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, the European Union's foreign policy chief said.

"This will allow a number of injured people to leave Gaza and receive medical care," EU foreign policy chief Kaya Kallas, who is also vice-president of the European Commission, said on Twitter.

The European Union also intends to deploy a civilian mission at the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip starting next February.

Kallas announced that the ministers agreed on the deployment of the European Union Border Assistance Mission, stressing that they received the invitation from Palestine and Israel and the approval of Egypt on this issue.

The ceasefire agreement between the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian resistance in the Gaza Strip stipulates, among its various details, the opening of the Rafah crossing 7 days after the start of the implementation of the first phase, with the entry of sufficient quantities of humanitarian aid, relief supplies and fuel via 600 trucks daily.

The Rafah crossing is scheduled to operate based on the August 2024 consultations with Egypt, which are largely based on the 2005 crossings agreement, especially with the Europeans playing a role in managing the crossing and the parties committing to the working mechanism.

Following the announcement of the ceasefire agreement, the European Union's foreign policy chief, Kaya Kallas, said that the bloc was in talks to revive a civilian mission to monitor the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, adding: "Discussions are underway about redeploying our monitoring mission in Rafah to ensure stability on the border, so that we are prepared."

A European Union civilian mission was set up to help monitor the Rafah crossing under an agreement between Israel and the Palestinian Authority in 2005, as part of international assistance for peace efforts when the occupation withdrew its forces and settlers from Gaza, but the mission only operated for a year and a half before being suspended when Hamas took control of the Gaza Strip as a result of the division events in the summer of 2007.

The August 2024 consultations focused on discussing the future of the management of the Rafah crossing from the Palestinian side, and that Egypt proposed that the management be “Palestinian-Palestinian” with representatives from the Gaza Strip and the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah.

During these consultations, Cairo rejected the presence of any Israeli delegation at the crossing, before accepting the presence of representatives from the European Union, in accordance with what was in effect in the crossings agreement concluded in 2005, which means that Hamas and "Israel" will not have any representation in the management of the crossing from the Palestinian side.

It was agreed that the crossing would be managed by a Palestinian support committee, in addition to a committee that includes representatives of the European Union, the United Nations, and international organizations.

The crossings agreement was signed between the Israeli occupation and the Palestinian Authority in November 2005. Its most important provisions stipulate that the movement of goods is allocated to the “Kerem Abu Salem border crossing,” while the Rafah land crossing was allocated to individuals holding a Palestinian identity card, with a number of restrictions, most notably: prior notification to the occupation government, as well as the approval of the Palestinian Authority.

Article 1 of the Agreement mandates EUBAM to actively monitor, verify and evaluate the performance of the Palestinian Authority in implementing the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing Point and will act in accordance with its delegated authority to ensure that the Palestinian Authority complies with all applicable laws and regulations relating to the Rafah Crossing Point and the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing Point. EUBAM and EUBAM will also contribute to building Palestinian capacity in all aspects of border control and customs work.

Article 2 includes the objectives of the EU mission’s deployment, which are: contributing to building confidence between the two parties, particularly with regard to all aspects of border control and customs work at the Rafah crossing, contributing to building institutional capacities in the Palestinian Authority to ensure effective border control as well as professional customs work, and improving international cooperation in border management.

Article 3 relates to the establishment of the EU mission and the implementation of active monitoring and verification tasks of the performance of Palestinian border guards and customs officials with regard to, inter alia, “effective border control and monitoring procedures based on Palestinian Authority laws and the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing, non-disruption of the operation of surveillance cameras and computer systems and equipment installed at the Rafah Crossing and the transmission of information in accordance with the provisions agreed upon by the two parties in the Agreed Principles for the Rafah Crossing.”

Arabic21