Netanyahu rules out reopening Rafah crossing 'until further notice' amid Gaza hostage row
The Israeli Prime Minister poured cold water on claims from the Palestinian embassy in Egypt's claims that the crossing - between Gaza and Egypt - would reopen on Monday
Gaza's Rafah crossing will remain closed until further notice, Benjamin Netanyahu has ruled, as the dispute over Hamas hostage returns continues to rumble on.
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The Israeli Prime Minister poured cold water on claims from the Palestinian embassy in Egypt's claims that the crossing - between Gaza and Egypt - would reopen on Monday.
“The crossing's opening will be considered based on the manner in which Hamas fulfils its part in returning the deceased hostages and implementing the agreed-upon framework,” Mr Netanyahu's office said in a statement on Saturday.
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The crossing, which has been largely closed since May 2024, would be used to get Palestinians residing in Egypt to return to Gaza, the embassy said.
It is not clear whether humanitarian aid would also be permitted to pass through.
Since the US-backed ceasefire deal was signed two weeks ago, some 560 metric tons of food have entered the Gaza Strip per day on average.
This figure is still well below the level needed in the famine-ridden enclave, the UN World Food Programme said.
Israeli forces shut down the crossing after they seized the Gaza side in May 2024.
It was briefly reopened in early 2025 during a short-lived ceasefire.
Netanyahu's comments came after Israel identified the body of the tenth Hamas hostage returned in the wake of the peace deal.
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Eliyahu Margalit’s remains were identified early on Saturday as Israel sent bulldozers into Gaza to search for the bodies of the remaining hostages.
It comes after Israel said one of the bodies returned by Hamas did not belong to an Israeli but rather a dead Palestinian.
Donald Trump has warned Israel will resume its assault on Gaza, which has seen nearly 70,000 Palestinians killed, if Hamas fails to return the bodies of all remaining hostages.
Margalit was abducted from a horse stable in Kibbutz Nir Oz when Hamas attacked Israel on October 7 2023.
He becomes the tenth dead hostage to be identified following the signing of Mr Trump’s peace deal signed last week.
Hamas has today accused Israel of violating their peace deal after 11 people were reportedly shot dead in Gaza yesterday.
The victims, including 7 children and three women, the group said.
The Israeli military has yet to comment on the deaths.
In a statement on Wednesday, Hamas claimed it is currently unable to return any more bodies to Israel.
Shortly after, Mr Trump issued a stark warning that fighting could begin again if Hamas fails to deliver every hostage soon.
"Israel will return to those streets as soon as I say the word," he told CNN.
"If they [Hamas] don't disarm, we will disarm them. And it will happen quickly and perhaps violently," Mr Trump also said during a White House meeting with Argentine President Javier Milei on Tuesday.
Tel Aviv officials said it would "not compromise" on hostage returns from Gaza, as they confirmed the closure of the entirety of the Rafah border.
The closure meant Gaza has seen its flow of aid significantly reduced, with locals already expressing their concerns over food, water and electricity since the ceasefire began.