DaysofPal- Palestinians returning to the Gaza Strip through the partially reopened Rafah crossing have described hours of interrogation, physical abuse, humiliation, and the confiscation of personal belongings by Israeli forces and border authorities.
Huda Abu Abed, a 57-year-old heart patient who had been evacuated to Egypt for medical treatment, said she expected delays and security checks after being cleared to return to Gaza following two years abroad.
Instead, she said she was blindfolded, handcuffed, interrogated for hours, and witnessed her daughter being beaten.
Abu Abed was among a small group permitted to return on Monday after the Israeli occupation allowed a limited reopening of Rafah for the first time since May 2024.
The crossing is operating under strict Israeli oversight, with European Union Border Assistance Mission (EUBAM) supervisors coordinating inspections and approvals with Israeli forces.
According to Abu Abed, travelers were treated respectfully on the Egyptian side of the crossing. However, upon reaching the Palestinian side, she said European monitors oversaw searches that resulted in the confiscation of medicines, mobile phones, gifts for family members, and even food items, allowing only clothing to pass.
Returnees were then forced to wait for Israeli approval before being allowed to enter Gaza.
The Israeli occupation has imposed tight quotas on movement through Rafah, permitting only 50 Palestinians per day to return to Gaza and a similar number of patients to leave, each accompanied by two people.
Palestinians who left Gaza before October 7, 2023, remain barred from returning. Palestinian officials say tens of thousands are registered to return, meaning the process could take years under current restrictions.
On the first day of reopening, dozens of approved returnees were reportedly turned back under unclear circumstances.
Only 12 people, mostly women and children, ultimately entered Gaza.
After crossing into the Strip, the group was stopped south of Khan Younis by an Israeli-backed militia and later transferred to an Israeli site.
Abu Abed said she was taken to a barracks, strip-searched, blindfolded, and interrogated by masked officers who questioned her about Hamas and pressured her to leave Gaza permanently.
She said her daughter was interrogated separately and assaulted by a female Israeli officer. Another returnee, Sabah Ismail al-Raqb, said she was doused with cold water, threatened with detention, and pressured to collaborate with Israeli forces, an offer she said she refused. She was released only after a European convoy intervened.
The women were eventually taken to Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis. Abu Abed said the ordeal left her convinced that the harsh treatment is intended to deter Palestinians from returning.
“They want to force us out by any means,” she said.
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