Right-wing Israeli website Israel Hayom, citing security officers in the area, claimed that such proximity "creates a new and worrying security reality". Residents of the Nahal Oz kibbutz near the Gaza border also reported what they described as additional "security incidents" in recent days, including two kites crossing into the community from over the Egyptian border. They warned of "a lack of deterrence and a gap between the statements made by the Israeli political leadership and the reality on the ground".

Israel’s Channel 12 quoted Boaz Bismuth, head of the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defence Committee, as saying that "the security briefing meeting scheduled for this week will discuss the exercises the Egyptian army plans to conduct near the border". Sources from communities in the so-called "Gaza envelope" described the Egyptian drills as "unacceptable", adding that "it is unreasonable to allow the Egyptian army to train at such close proximity to the fence, as this creates a reality that could be dangerous". They added that "this step deepens feelings of uncertainty among residents, especially after movements of Egyptian pickup trucks near the border were observed several weeks ago".

The "Israel Envelope Forum" warned in a statement of "dangerous standards" along the southern border, saying current developments were "a painful reminder of how our enemies prepare and train close to the fence". It described shooting activity near the Egyptian border as "part of the routine". The forum called on Israeli political and security leaders to intervene, with local sources saying that "the residents of the envelope are not a testing ground for the State of Israel nor a training field for the Egyptian army".

Meanwhile, the council of Nahal Oz, one of the kibbutzim heavily affected during the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack, said the security situation "remains far from stable". It warned that recent incidents were seen by residents as "a worrying indicator of weak deterrence". In a statement, the council said the developments come amid reports that Hamas is "rearming".

Residents said the gap between government statements and the situation on the ground "raises deep concern", adding that "community resilience is not a blank cheque; in order to complete reconstruction and ensure the safe return of residents, the state must guarantee that what happened will not happen again". They also warned against "re-establishing previous assumptions that treated the threat from Gaza as secondary", saying "it must not be allowed to re-entrench the belief that collapsed during the most dangerous event in Israel’s history". Residents near the Egyptian border called on the government to present a "full and transparent" picture of the situation, act decisively against any violations of sovereignty, and prevent developments that could escalate into a new round of conflict.

Under the 1979 Egypt-Israel peace treaty, Sinai is divided into zones with strict limits on military deployments, particularly in the area closest to the Israeli border, where only lightly armed police and international observers are permitted. While Egypt is not explicitly barred from conducting military exercises, any activity involving regular army forces near the frontier would typically require prior coordination and Israeli approval, making such drills highly sensitive under the treaty framework.