On the 25th of November 2015, EU BAM Rafah celebrates its ten years anniversary. It was established in 2005 as a civilian crisis management mission operating under the European Security and Defence Policy pillar of the European Union. The mission's mandate is to monitor, verify and evaluate the Palestinian Authority's performance with regard to the implementation of the Agreed Principles for Rafah Crossing and was acting to ensure that the PA complies with all applicable rules and international regulations concerning the Rafah Crossing Point (RCP) and the terms of the Agreed Principles for Rafah Crossing.
EUBAM Rafah was fully deployed from 2005 to 2006. However, when Hamas took over of the Gaza Strip, the Mission operations at the RCP were suspended on 13 June 2007. The Mission has been on standby since then. EUBAM Rafah is oriented towards the future and working now on further enhancing the operational capacity of the PA for a possible re-deployment to the Rafah Crossing Point. It also aims at and strengthening its relationship with the Palestinian agencies responsible for borders and crossings.
