Brussels, The Council of the European Union recently prolonged the mandate of the EU Border Assistance Mission for the Rafah crossing point (EU BAM Rafah), starting from 1 July 2014 until 30 June 2015.
The EUBAM Rafah mission was launched in 2005, after Israel’s disengagement from the Gaza Strip, to provide a third-party presence at the Rafah Crossing Point (RCP) in order to contribute to the opening of the crossing point and to build confidence between the Government of Israel and the Palestinian Authority, in cooperation with the European Union's institution-building efforts.
Despite the suspension of operations at the RCP in June 2007, EUBAM has maintained its capacity to rapidly redeploy to the crossing point, once political and security conditions allow.
