Israeli army More than 100,000 people have died ahead of the long-anticipated ground offensive on eastern Rafah, despite warnings from the United Nations of mounting humanitarian devastation and inevitable ‘bloodshed’. The Palestinians have been asked to evacuate the area.
A statement issued by the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) on Monday said that the Israeli army has begun dropping pamphlets on Palestinians taking refuge in Rafah aid camps, where the army is fighting against Hamas.Action with force‘ Ready to do.
People have been told to move to an Israeli-declared ‘humanitarian zone’ in al-Mawasi as the army prepares for a ‘limited perimeter operation’. However, Israel did not confirm when the attack on Rafah would begin.
Palestinian families in Rafah told The Independent that there is a state of panic following the evacuation order and that al-Mawasi is ‘not a livable place’ and is not safe.
The statement added that the IDF is asking the population of the Hamas-held area to temporarily evacuate from the eastern areas of Rafah to the extended humanitarian zone, in accordance with the approval of political circles.
The statement said the IDF is “communicating with Palestinian citizens through announcements, written messages, phone calls and media broadcasts in Arabic.”
The army has started dropping red and blue flyers warning Palestinian civilians sheltering in the Rafah camp, Brazil camp and al-Shaboura neighborhood to leave the area immediately.
The flyers carry a message in Arabic that translates to ‘living in these areas will put your lives in danger.’
“The IDF is going to take forceful action against terrorist organizations in the area where you are currently living, as the IDF has done so far,” the statement added.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has apparently walked away from cease-fire talks that are set to last until Tuesday, refusing to agree to Hamas’s demand for Israeli forces to withdraw from Gaza.
Multiple displaced Palestinian families in Rafah say people are scared because they have nowhere to go. Nizal Hamduna, who has been displaced twice from northern Gaza and lives in a tent with his family, said it is not possible for people to live in al-Mawasi.
This small strip of coastal land, which the Israeli military has described as a ‘humanitarian zone’, consists mostly of sand dunes and is full of displaced people.
A frustrated Hamduna told The Independent: ‘Al-Mawasi is not a place to live. Before the war it was just coastal land with no infrastructure. We have discussed trying to move to another location but there is no place we can stay that is safe. Everything is destroyed due to lack of water.’
‘Everyone is asking the question, where do we go? Al Mawasi is not very big and there are already a large number of people here. There are already millions of people living there, in thousands of interconnected tents. There is also the issue of how do people get there?
“Everyone is worried and scared,” added Nizal.
Airstrikes in eastern Rafah overnight added to the difficulties. Several people were killed in these attacks and the land route to Karam Abu Salem was temporarily closed, causing food prices in Rafah to double overnight. Palestinian health officials say at least 19 people were killed by Israeli fire. UN officials told The Independent that the Israeli army’s operation in Rafah, where 1.4 million people have taken refuge, could turn into a “bloodbath”. Rafah is mostly inhabited by people who have already been displaced, and half of them are children.
Tamara al-Rafai, from the UN’s Palestinian refugee agency UNRWA, told The Independent that the potential impact of the attack would be “catastrophic”.
He said: ‘No amount of contingency planning can alleviate the overwhelming anxiety felt by most people in Rafah today, while news of an imminent attack is common.’ He added that UNRWA is committed to stay in the border town and continue humanitarian relief operations.
“Given the scale, scope and scale, the potential consequences of such a military operation would be devastating. The residents of Gaza have already seen it all over the Strip in the past seven months,” he added.
“A humanitarian ceasefire is the only way to prevent further deaths and destruction.”
Speaking to The Independent in Rafah, Louise Wattridge, who also works for UNRWA, said there had been high hopes for a ceasefire in the past few days, but now there was ‘grave fear and concern’ about security. Because Israel’s attack on Rafah seems inevitable.
He told The Independent from the Gaza border town: ‘Everyone I spoke to here told me how scared people are of what’s going to happen next.’
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‘Everyone is asking where do we go and what will they get? Even in Rafah, despite months of humanitarian work, infrastructure is lacking because there are so many people living in such a small space.’
He said that the recent heat wave in Rafah had resulted in the deaths of people who had taken shelter in plastic tents that did not provide any shelter. “The growing threat of re-displacement will put the Palestinians in dire straits. This is already worsening the conditions for survival and will put millions more at risk.’
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said on Monday that Israeli military action in Rafah was necessary because of Hamas’ refusal to accept mediation for a ceasefire and the release of Israeli prisoners.
Netanyahu is sticking to his plans to attack Rafah despite warnings that it would cause mass casualties among civilians taking refuge there. World leaders and aid agencies are calling on Israel to end the attack.
Rafah, a border region between the Gaza Strip and Egypt in the south of the Hamas-controlled area, is home to a staggering 1 million Palestinians who have taken refuge there since the Israeli offensive in the north.
The Israeli military calls Rafah the last stronghold of Hamas and claims that between 5,000 and 8,000 of its fighters and senior leaders are hiding in the city.
On Sunday, Hamas militants fired a rocket from the Karam Abu Salem crossing in Rafah, killing three Israeli soldiers.
The IDF claimed that 10 missiles were fired from a section of the Rafah crossing in southern Gaza, about 3.6 kilometers (2.2 miles) from the main route used for aid deliveries. The armed wing of Hamas claimed responsibility for the attack.
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2024-07-27 14:02:52
