Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s comments on the possibility of Palestinians leaving the Gaza Strip via the Rafah crossing have sparked sharp condemnation from Egypt, escalating tensions between the neighboring countries.
In a Thursday interview with the Telegram channel “Abu Ali Express,” Netanyahu said, “I can open the crossing for them, but they will be immediately blocked on the Egyptian side.”
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry responded with a strong statement, accusing Netanyahu of attempting “to prolong the escalation and avoid addressing the consequences of Israeli violations in Gaza.”
Netanyahu’s office countered, saying the prime minister was speaking about “the freedom of every individual to choose where to live — a basic human right at all times, especially during wartime. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry prefers to trap Gaza residents who wish to leave the war zone against their will.”
In the interview, Netanyahu criticized the international community amid mounting scrutiny of Israel’s actions in Gaza. “We are not here to expel anyone, but to trap them inside? By force? Human rights defenders — where are you? Even granting a Palestinian the basic right to leave — that too is denied. It’s unbelievable,” he said.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty addressed the remarks at a press conference in Nicosia, Cyprus, calling any effort to uproot Palestinians “a red line for Egypt” and saying it would not be allowed. “Uprooting would mean eliminating the Palestinian issue — there is no legal, moral, or ethical basis for this,” he said.
The Egyptian Foreign Ministry added that the statements attributed to Netanyahu “are an attempt to perpetuate escalation and instability, in order to avoid addressing the consequences of Israeli violations in Gaza, both internally and externally.”
Egypt has repeatedly signaled it will not fully open its borders to Palestinians. The ministry described the situation in Gaza as “a continuing genocide — mass killing of civilians and intentional starvation created by the Israelis.”