COGAT: Hamas detained sick Gazans after Israel approved exit from Strip

COGAT said Israel has allowed about 50,000 Gazan civilians, most of them medical patients and their escorts, to leave for third countries since the start of the war.

By JNS

Hamas terrorists detained a group of more than 100 sick Gazans after Israel approved their exit from the Strip on Monday, Jerusalem’s Defense Ministry said.

According to the ministry’s Coordinator for Government Activities in the Territories (COGAT) unit, the group was “held up for more than one hour at a checkpoint that Hamas terrorists set up.”

“When Hamas continues to spread lies to the world, saying Israel is hindering sick patients from Gaza from exiting the Gaza Strip for medical treatment, the reality again told a different story,” it added.

The statement noted that the United Nations on Monday condemned “forces affiliated with the de facto authorities in Gaza,” e.g., Hamas, for hindering humanitarian efforts “by stopping convoys for inspection and entering U.N. warehouses and facilities, which is illegal.”

“While accusations against Israel receive immediate attention, Hamas’s actions are time and again ignored by human rights organizations, despite their harm to the civilian population,” COGAT stated.

COGAT said Israel has allowed about 50,000 Gazan civilians, most of them medical patients and their escorts, to leave for third countries since the start of the war.

The Rafah Crossing with Egypt has been operating since the October 2025 ceasefire, with about 4,100 people entering Gaza and 4,400 leaving through the crossing to date, it added.