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Name of Israeli military facility at Gaza crossing with Egypt linked to Zionist anthem and pro-settler NGO, signalling a shift, analysts say. from security control to West Bank-style land grab and dehumanisation of Palestinians.

The Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt has reopened partially for a few Palestinians after an 18-month closure in tandem with an added restriction to control the movement of returnees. The Israeli army has set up a checkpoint called Regavim in an area under its control outside the crossing for those entering Gaza from Egypt.

As the first trickle of humanity passed through the gates on Monday, official Israeli military documents gave it a name that indicates the facility is no longer being treated as a border crossing but as an operation for population control.

In an official statement published on its website on Sunday, the Israeli army announced the completion of what it called the “Regavim Inspection Nekez”.

While the Israeli military frames this technical language as routine, analysts told Al Jazeera that the choice of the words “Regavim” and “Nekez” indicates Israel’s long-term intentions.

Al Jazeera spoke to Israeli affairs experts who argued that these terms reveal a dual strategy: invoking Zionist nostalgia to claim the land while using engineering terms to dehumanise the Palestinian people.

Historical code: ‘Clod after clod’

For analyst Mohannad Mustafa, the name Regavim is not random; it is a deliberate ideological trigger intended to resonate with the Israeli government’s far-right base.

“In Hebrew, Regavim means ‘clods of earth’ or patches of arable land,” Mustafa explained. “But it is not just a word. It is a trigger for the Zionist collective memory of land redemption.”

The term is inextricably linked to the Zionist children’s song and poem Dunam Po Ve Dunam Sham (A Dunam Here, a Dunam There) by Joshua Friedman, which was an anthem for the early settlement movement. The lyrics celebrate the acquisition of land: “Dunam here and dunam there/Clod after clod (Regev ahar regev)/Thus we shall redeem the land of the people.”

“By officially naming the Rafah corridor Regavim, the army is sending a subliminal message,” Mustafa said. “They are framing their presence in Gaza not as a temporary security mission but as a form of ‘redeeming the land’ identical to the ideology of the early pioneers.”

Political code: The ‘West Bank model’

Beyond the historical nostalgia, the name has a direct line to the present-day architects of Israel’s annexation policies: the Regavim Movement.

This far-right NGO, cofounded in 2006 by Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich, has been the primary force behind the expansion of Israeli control in the occupied West Bank. A 2023 investigation by the Israeli newspaper Haaretz detailed how the organisation essentially became the “intelligence officer” for the state, using drones and field data to map and demolish Palestinian structures in Area C, the 61 percent of the occupied West Bank under full Israeli control.

Mustafa argued that applying this name to the Rafah crossing signals the transfer of the “civil administration” model from the West Bank to Gaza.

“It suggests that Gaza is no longer a separate entity but a territory to be managed with the same tools used to prevent Palestinian statehood in Judea and Samaria,” Mustafa said, using the Israeli terms for the West Bank.

Operational code: A ‘political brand’ and a ‘drain’

Analyst Ihab Jabareen takes the name Regavim a step further. He argued it has evolved beyond its linguistic meaning into a modern “political brand” for the settlement right and is being used to normalise a long-term Israeli presence.

However, Jabareen said the use of the term Nekez in the Israeli military statement portends even more danger.

“While Regavim operates as a political brand, Nekez reveals the cold, engineering mindset of the military,” Jabareen told Al Jazeera. “A Nekez is a drainage point. It is a hydraulic term used for managing sewage, floodwaters or irrigation – not for processing human beings.”

Jabareen argued that describing a human border crossing as a “drain” reflects three chilling assumptions now formalised in military doctrine:

1. Dehumanisation: “The Palestinian is no longer a citizen. They are a ‘fluid mass’ or a ‘flow’ that must be regulated to prevent overflow,” Jabareen said.
2. The end of negotiations: “You do not negotiate with a drain. Rafah is no longer a political border subject to sovereignty. It is an engineering problem to be managed.
3. Infrastructure, not a border: “Security is now being managed like a sewage system – purely technical, devoid of rights.”

“This is colder and more dangerous than standard settlement rhetoric,” Jabareen warned. “It converts the political issue of Gaza into a permanent technical function.”

A formula for ‘quiet control’

Both analysts agreed that the official adoption of these two terms points to a reality that is neither a full withdrawal nor declared annexation.

“It is a formula for ‘quiet control’,” Jabareen explained. “Israel doesn’t need to declare immediate settlement to control the territory. By treating the land as ‘Regavim’ (soil to be held) and the people as a ‘Nekez’ (a flow to be filtered), they are establishing a long-term reality where Gaza is an administered space, never an independent entity.”

Mustafa concurred: “The name ‘Regavim’ tells the settlers: ‘We have returned to the land.’ And the official designation ‘Nekez’ tells the security establishment: ‘We have the valve to turn the human flow on or off at will.’”

Travel expert Simon Calder has called the new booking system a “real faff” as Rome introduces charges to manage overtourism.

A travel expert has issued a warning about major changes taking effect at a world-renowned tourist attraction from tomorrow.

Numerous cities have been grappling with overtourism in recent years, with authorities working to tackle enormous crowds and unacceptable conduct.

Rome has now joined the growing list of cities taking action. Visitors wishing to see the famous Trevi Fountain will be required to pay a €2 (£1.75) entrance fee. The new charge for tourists comes into effect on February 2.

Coins thrown into the fountain will continue to be donated to charity, but the entrance fee for the Baroque landmark will go to the city council. Officials say the money will fund the fountain’s maintenance as well as visitor management.

Rome anticipates generating €6.5million annually from the fountain alone. Furthermore, the Trevi Fountain isn’t the only attraction where tourists will now face charges, as fees have been introduced at five additional sites including the Napoleonic Museum, reports the Express.

The Trevi Fountain attracts approximately 30,000 visitors daily. Travel expert Simon Calder offered his perspective on the new charging system, revealing it took him 15 minutes to secure a ticket.

He confessed: “It’s a real faff, but they say it is necessary at the Trevi Fountain, and five other locations around Rome, in order to keep tourism manageable.”

Explaining the rationale behind the fee, Simon told BBC Breakfast : “The idea is that tourism is so intense in some key locations, that you have got to do something to control it.”

Discussing the impact of the charge, Simon said: “I don’t think it will put people off, it will hopefully make the experience a bit more manageable.

“There has been cases of people climbing into the fountain, they have police there prepared to haul them out and fine them heavily.

“I think Romans are in two separate camps here. There’s the people that say it is a public space, you can’t possibly start regulating entry, it is anti-democratic and anti-freedom.

“Then there’s others that say, frankly, when you’re into the summer in Rome things become a bit unmanageable and anything we can do to try to bring some decorum has to be a good thing.”

From February, tourists and non-residents wanting to enter the basin of the Trevi Fountain must shell out two euros for a ticket, which grants access daily between 9am and 10pm.

Rome residents, youngsters aged five and under, and disabled visitors can still enter without charge. Viewing the Trevi Fountain from afar will remain completely free.