Philadelphi Corridor
The Philadelphi Corridor, also called Philadelphi Route or Saladin Axis (
Following Israel's
One purpose of the Philadelphi Route was to prevent the movement of illegal materials (including weapons and ammunition) and people between Egypt and the Gaza Strip.
Blockade of the Gaza Strip |
---|
Crossings |
2004 |
Philadelphi Accord |
2006 |
Economic sanctions |
2007 |
Fatah–Hamas battle |
2008 |
2009 |
Viva Palestina "Lifeline 3" |
2010 |
2011 |
2015 |
Freedom Flotilla III |
2016 |
Women's Boat to Gaza |
2023 |
Israeli "total blockade" |
Name
The name Philadelphi was "randomly chosen by the Israeli army as a code name for the border zone"; in other words the name has no historical roots in the area.
Background
The 1979 Egypt–Israel peace treaty, in which Israel agreed to withdraw from the Sinai in exchange for peace with Egypt, stipulated that the border with Egypt would follow the border of Mandatory Palestine. The new border cut across Rafah, dividing the town and leaving families separated on both sides of the border. Rafah would be the main border crossing in Gaza. It was agreed that the area near the border (known as Area C) would be demilitarized, with Egypt only permitted to maintain police forces there.[1]
Philadelphi Accord
In 2004, the
Much opposition arose within the "Israeli defense establishment" to vacating the Philadelphi route for strategic reasons. The primary concern was the militarization of Gaza and the threat to Israeli security that its militarization would pose. However, it was decided to vacate the corridor in order to prevent Israeli-Palestinian friction which could destabilize the region further.[5]
Israel's decision to withdraw from the Phildelphi Route also posed a threat to the neighboring Egyptians through the potential militarization of Gaza. It was feared that Israel's departure would create a power vacuum that the weak Palestinian leadership would not be able to fill, thus creating a void to be filled by radical Islamists.[7]
The Accord itself contains 83 clauses and specifically describes the mission and obligations of the parties, including the specific types of machinery, weaponry and infrastructure permitted.[5]
Egyptian Border Guard Force
Under the Philadelphi Accord, Egypt was authorized to deploy 750 border guards along the route to patrol the border on Egypt's side. The agreement specified that the Egyptian force is "a designated force for the combating of terrorism and infiltration across the border" and not intended for any military purposes.
The Accord specifically indicated that the new agreement did not modify or amend the 1979
The parties acknowledge that the BGF [border Guard Force] deployment and these Agreed Arrangements, in no way constitute an amendment to or a revision or modification of Annex I to the Peace Treaty. Rather they constitute additional mission-oriented security measures agreed upon by the parties.
— Philadelphi Accord, Article 9
Instead, it "enhance[ed] Egypt's capability to fight smuggling along the border," while ensuring that the forces would not serve any military purposes.[5] Israel insisted on the inclusion in the agreement of provisions indicating that it was not an amendment to the 1979 Peace Treaty because during negotiations Egypt attempted to frame the agreement toward the re-militarization of the Sinai and its borders with Israel and Gaza.[7]
The Philadelphi Accord created the Egyptian Border Guard Force (BGF) composed of 750 ground personnel divided between headquarters and four companies. The agreement specified that the BGF be equipped with the following:
- 500 assault rifles
- 67 light machine guns
- 27 light anti-personnel launchers
- ground radar
- 31 police-style vehicles
- 44 logistical and auxiliary vehicles[5]
Sentry posts, watchtowers and logistical facilities were permitted. Heavy armored vehicles, fortification, military-style intelligence-gathering equipment, and weaponry and equipment beyond the above numbers were prohibited.[5]
Controversy in the Knesset
A number of scholars have looked into the legal issue of whether or not the Philadelphi Accord needed to be passed by the Knesset. Generally, the Knesset approves of major treaties either before or after their passage. The issue arose because the Philadelphi Accord would partially militarize Area C of the Egypt–Israel Peace Treaty, changing the treaty and hence needing Knesset approval. This position was advocated by the Knesset's Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee Chairperson, Yuval Steinitz; he was supported by MK Danny Yatom and they jointly filed a petition to the Supreme Court against the Government. Prime Minister Ariel Sharon on the other hand, argued that the treaty did not change the "demilitarized" status of Area C, and therefore was not a significant enough treaty that it needed to be ratified. On July 6, 2005, the Attorney General ruled that the government was not bound to seek Knesset approval for the treaty, but convention stipulated that it should.[8]
Rafah border crossing
Following the disengagement from Gaza, Israel signed with the
The
After 2007
In January 2008, Palestinian militants
After the fall of the Mubarak regime in 2011, Egypt relaxed restrictions at its border with the Gaza Strip, allowing more Palestinians to cross freely for the first time in four years.
As of April 2013, Egypt reinforced its troops on the border with the Gaza Strip. The Egyptian Army has been destroying tunnels by flooding them.[15][16]
The Rafah area was the site of active conflict in the
On Dec. 11, 2023, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told a Knesset Foreign Affairs and Security Committee that Israel will control the Philadelphi Corridor (border between Gaza and Egypt) and that Israel would impose a buffer zone inside of the Gaza Strip.[19]
See also
- Egypt – Gaza subterranean barrier
- Rafah Border Crossing
References
- ^ a b Moshe Hirsch (2006). ""Treaty-Making Power: Approval of the Israel-Egypt "Philadelphi Accord" by the Knesset; 39 Isr. L. Rev. 229". The Israel Law Review.Moshe Hirsch (2006). "Footnotes". Israel Law Review.
- ^ Facts, figures about the Gaza-Egypt border barrier. Associated Press, 23 January 2008. On web.archive.org
- ^ FACTBOX-The Gaza-Egypt border corridor, Reuters, January 12, 2009
- ^ The Disengagement Plan - General Outline 18 April 2004
- ^ a b c d e f A New Reality on the Egypt-Gaza Border (part I): Contents of the New Israel-Egypt Agreement. Brooke Neuman, Washington Institute for Near East Policy, 19 September 2005
- ^ Cabinet Communique. FMA, 28 August 2005
- ^ a b Brooke Neuman (September 21, 2005), A New Reality on the Egypt-Gaza Border (part II): Contents of the New Israel-Egypt Agreement, Washington Institute for Near East Policy
- ^ Moshe Hirsch (2006). ""Treaty-Making Power: Approval of the Israel-Egypt "Philadelphi Accord" by the Knesset". Israel Law Review. pp. 230–234. Retrieved May 20, 2010.
- ^ Agreed documents by Israel and Palestinians on Movement and Access from and to Gaza Archived 2013-10-04 at the Wayback Machine, 15 November 2005
- ^ a b c The Agreement on Movement and Access One Year On Archived 2013-10-05 at the Wayback Machine. United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), November 2006
- ^ Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs — Background Note: Egypt. U.S. State Department, 10 November 2010. On web.archive.org
- ^ "Egypt 'won't force Gazans back'". BBC News. 23 January 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-23.
- ^ a b "Egypt resumes demolition of Gaza tunnels". Ma'an News Agency. Archived from the original on April 30, 2013. Retrieved September 16, 2012.
- ^ Egypt eases blockade at Gaza's Rafah border. BBC News, 28 May 2011.
- ^ Egypt floods Gaza tunnels to cut Palestinian lifeline. Reuters, 13 February 2013
- ^ Hamas: Egypt destroying Gaza smuggling tunnels by flooding them. Jack Khoury, Haaretz-premium, 11 February 2013
- ^ "Israel strikes and seals off Gaza after incursion by Hamas, which vows to execute hostages". AP News. 9 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
- ^ "Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt disrupted by Israeli air raids". www.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
- ^ Israel starts building Gaza buffer zone, Jewish News Syndicate Dec 24, 2023
External links
- SULLIVAN, Denis Joseph; JONES, Kimberly A. Global Security Watch - Egypt: A Reference Handbook, ABC-CLIO/Greenwood, 2008, pp. 116s.