According to NBC News, although the Philadelphia corridor is small in area, it plays an important role for many countries in the region.
The Philadelphia Corridor is located on the border between Egypt and the Gaza Strip. It is also known by another name, the Salah Al-Din axis, and is about 14km long and less than 100m wide.
The zone was established in 1978 under the Camp David Accords between Egypt and Israel to prevent arms smuggling and control access to Gaza. However, it was no longer under Israeli control when it unilaterally withdrew from Gaza in 2005.
In May 2024, Israel re-established control in the Philadelphia corridor after carrying out an attack on the night of May 26 (local time) on the city of Rafah to destroy Hamas forces.
The Israeli government later discovered about 150 tunnels that Hamas militants regularly use to secretly transport weapons. These tunnels are about 30m underground and run along the Philadelphia corridor.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is determined to maintain the presence of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the area to prevent Hamas from using the corridor. He reaffirmed this in a statement on the evening of September 2 (local time).
Meanwhile, Hamas chief negotiator Khalil AI-Hayya voiced his opposition to the Israeli military presence in the Philadelphia corridor and declared that no ceasefire agreement would be signed unless the IDF leaves the corridor area.
The Philadelphia Corridor has been mentioned a lot recently after the bodies of six Israeli hostages were found in the Rafah tunnels on the night of August 31 (local time).
