Israel said Wednesday it had achieved “tactical control” over the boundary that separates Gaza and Egypt, a significant success for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has repeatedly described control of the area as an objective for Israel in Gaza.
An official with the Israel Defense Forces, speaking on the condition of anonymity to brief reporters, said that while Israel does not have “boots on the ground” throughout the boundary, known as the Philadelphi corridor, its control means Israel can “cut off” Hamas supplies via underground tunnels in the corridor.
“It means we have the ability to cut off the oxygen line that Hamas has used for replenishing and movement in and around that area,” the official said, adding that about 20 cross-border tunnels had been found in the area.
The IDF announcement came amid intensifying international condemnation of Israel’s ongoing offensive in Rafah, just north of the Philadelphi corridor, after a strike at a tent camp on Sunday killed at least 45, and amid no sign of an end to fighting. A senior Israeli official said on Wednesday that the war in Gaza could last the rest of this year, prompting U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken to say there was an urgent need to plan for the “day after” the war.
Israeli military control of the Philadelphi corridor could complicate political relations with Cairo, risking a landmark 1979 Egypt-Israel peace treaty that has led to a half-century of coexistence.
The corridor is a buffer zone and a no man’s land about nine miles long and several hundred yards wide that stretches from the southernmost tip of Gaza to the Mediterranean Sea. Israel has not had a troop presence along the border since 2005, when the country withdrew its forces from the Gaza Strip.
Egyptian officials did not publicly respond to the IDF announcement. A former Egyptian official familiar with negotiations, speaking on the condition of anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue, said that the Israeli military presence in the buffer zone appeared to violate the Camp David Accords of 1978, the U.S.-brokered agreements that led to the Egyptian-Israeli peace treaty of 1979.
U.S. officials have expressed frustration with Israel’s war efforts in recent weeks. Speaking in Moldova on Wednesday, Blinken told reporters that Israel urgently needs a “clear plan” for after the war in Gaza ends that can ensure the enduring defeat of Hamas.
Blinken had been asked about comments made by Tzachi Hanegbi, Israel’s national security adviser, who had told Kan public radio Wednesday that he was expecting “another seven months of fighting” to destroy Hamas and other militant groups, adding that 2024 would be “a year of war.”
[The Washington Post Report continues]
Eyewitnesses contacted by The Washington Post on Wednesday said Israeli tanks had pushed closer into central Rafah, accompanying an intense air operation that has led to what they described as a near-constant thud of airstrikes and other explosions. Responding to questions about those reports, the Israeli military said Wednesday that it “does not share the location of its forces.”
The witnesses said tanks were near the Awda roundabout in central Rafah and had taken up positions in western parts of the city, including the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood, the site of Sunday’s strikes.
Israeli forces expanded a cordon around Rafah on Wednesday, according to Mohammad al-Mughair of the civil defense forces in Gaza. “We expect that the Tal al-Sultan camp will be stormed,” Mughair said. Residents in that neighborhood said Israeli forces were increasing surveillance of the area using unmanned vehicles.
Ellen Francis, Kelly Kasulis Cho, Lior Soroka, Kareem Fahim, Claire Parker and Hajar Harb contributed to this report.
View this Washington Post Report from May 29th