Italy says monitoring mission, which was halted when Hamas seized control of Strip in 2007, 'was launched at the request of Israel and the PA'

The 27-nation bloc set up a civilian mission in 2005 to help monitor the crossing, but it was suspended two years later after the militant Islamist group Hamas took control of Gaza.

A view of the Rafah border crossing between Egypt and the Gaza Strip, as trucks carrying aid wait to cross, amid a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah, Egypt, January 19, 2025. REUTERS/Mohamed Abd El Ghany/File Photo BRUSSELS (Reuters) - The European Union will restart a civilian mission to monitor the border crossing between Gaza and Egypt at Rafah,

The European Union is ready to redeploy its border assistance mission at the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt, Kaja Kallas, the European Union's foreign affairs chief, said on Monday. The civilian mission was launched in 2005 to assist with trade facilitation and the processing of biometric passports but was suspended in 2007 when Hamas took