2024-05-07 23:37:00
International pressure mounts on Israel to stop large-scale Rafah incursion
Israeli attack as Israeli forces launch a ground and air operation in the eastern part of Rafah, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas, in Rafah, southern Gaza, May 7, 2024. (REUTERS/Hatem Khaled)
International pressure is growing once morest Israel as its army seized the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing and refused to rule out a full-scale invasion of the southern Gaza city.
The long-standing support of the Biden administration Israel has come under scrutiny as the humanitarian crisis in Gaza grows, with senior US officials increasingly expressing concern regarding a possible large-scale military operation in Rafah, where more than a million Palestinians have taken refuge.
He CIA director Bill Burnswill return to Cairo this Tuesday to continue participating in talks, a source familiar with the meetings told CNN, as the United States and other mediators seek to reach a ceasefire agreement for the hostages.
The regional director of the World Health Organization, Hanan Balkhy, warned of the consequences of the Israeli military operation, writing in X that it put the lives of 1.5 million people “in grave danger.” He added that humanitarian groups were “committed to staying and delivering” aid and called for the Rafah border crossing to be “urgently reopened.”
Previously, UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said the closure of the crossing might paralyze humanitarian efforts throughout Gaza. Egypt’s Foreign Ministry condemned Israel for seizing control of the Palestinian side of the key crossing, calling the move a “dangerous escalation.”
The boss of the UN, Antonio Guterreshas called on Israel and Hamas to reach an agreement to end the bloodshed, while the EU’s foreign policy chief, Joseph Borrellreiterated calls for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to attack Rafah.
“I fear that this will once more cause many victims, civilian victims, whatever they say. There are 600,000 children in Gaza. They will be pushed into the so-called ‘safe zones’; but there are no safe zones in Gaza,” he said.
Residents of Rafah were informed by airdropped leaflets over the past 48 hours to head to Israel’s designated “expanded humanitarian areas.” Aid groups have previously said that one of them, Al-Mawasi, a coastal town near Khan Younis, is not suitable for habitation.
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