RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — Israel ordered new evacuations in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Saturday, preparing to expand military operations near the center of the population center against growing pressure. tens of thousands more people were forced to move due to war From our close ally, the United States, among others.
as Pro-Palestinian protests It went on to say that Israeli forces were also advancing into areas of devastated northern Gaza, where it claimed Hamas militants had regrouped.
Israel is currently evacuating the eastern third of Rafah, considered the last refuge in Gaza. Due to the planned full-scale invasion of Rafah, the United Nations further paralyze humanitarian operations and cause a surge in civilian casualties.
Rafah, which borders Egypt near a major aid entry point, has already been affected. The Israeli army is occupied the Gaza side The Rafah intersection was closed.
Egypt is refusing to coordinate with Israel on the delivery of aid through the Rafah border, citing “unacceptable Israeli escalation,” state television Al-Kahera News reported on Saturday, citing anonymous officials. It was reported as. The channel has close ties to Egypt’s security services.
US President Joe Biden said he would not provide offensive weapons to Israel because of Rafah. On Friday, the Biden administration called it “reasonable.” Evidence that Israel violated international law Protecting civilians — Washington’s strongest statement yet on the issue.
In response, Ofir Falk, the Israeli prime minister’s foreign policy adviser, told The Associated Press that Israel is acting in accordance with the laws of armed conflict and that the military has taken extensive measures to avoid civilian casualties. He said some of the measures include warning the public about military operations by phone and phone calls. text message.
is more than 1.4 million Palestinians Half of Gaza’s population has taken refuge in Rafah, most after fleeing Israeli attacks elsewhere. The evacuations have forced some people to return to the north, where areas have been devastated by previous Israeli attacks. Aid agencies estimate 110,000 people had been evacuated before Saturday’s order, with an additional 40,000 likely to rise.
“Are we going to wait until we’re all piling up and dying? So we decided to leave. It’s better that way,” he said as people rushed to load mattresses, water tanks and other belongings into cars. said Hanan Al Satari, a resident of Rafah.
“There are no safe areas in Gaza for Israeli forces. They are targeting everything,” said Abu Yusuf al-Dairi, who had previously been evacuated from Gaza City.
Many people have been forced to evacuate multiple times. There are only a few places left to go. Some people who fled the fighting earlier this week have erected tent camps and strained infrastructure in the city of Khan Yunis and the central city of Deir al-Balah, which were half destroyed in an earlier Israeli attack.
Some Palestinians have been sent to what Israel calls a humanitarian safe zone along the Mwasi coast, where some 450,000 people are already crammed together in squalid conditions. The camp is littered with trash and lacks basic facilities.
Georgios Petropoulos, an official with the UN humanitarian agency in Rafah, said aid workers did not have the supplies to support operations in their new locations. “We simply don’t have tents, we don’t have blankets, we don’t have bedding, we don’t have any of the items that people on the move would expect to get from the humanitarian system,” he said.
The World Food Program has warned that it will run out of food to distribute in southern Gaza by Saturday, Petropoulos said.Parts of Gaza face further challenges as WFP chief says “Full-scale starvation.” Aid groups say they will soon run out of fuel, forcing hospitals to suspend critical operations and stopping trucks delivering aid.
Fierce fighting was also taking place in northern Gaza. Israeli military spokesman Avichai Adley told Palestinians in Jabaliya and Beit Rahiya and surrounding areas to leave their homes and head to evacuation centers west of Gaza City, saying they were in a “dangerous war zone.” , warned that Israel “will launch a major armed attack.” ”
The United Nations agency supporting Gaza residents, known as UNRWA, said around 300,000 people were affected by evacuation orders in Rafah and Jabaliya, but that number could rise.
Northern Gaza is under Israeli control, which began on October 7 after Hamas and other armed groups attacked southern Israel, killing around 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking another 250 hostages. It became the first target of a ground attack. They still house around 100 prisoners of war and more than 30 bodies. Hamas announced on Saturday that hostage Nadav Popplewell had died from injuries sustained in an Israeli airstrike a month ago. Hamas offered no evidence of his claims.
Israeli artillery and ground attacks have killed more than 34,800 Palestinians, the majority of them women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between civilians and fighters in its statistics. do not have. Israel accuses Hamas of infiltrating densely populated residential areas and causing civilian casualties.
Civilian authorities in Gaza on Saturday revealed details of a mass grave at Shifa Hospital, the largest hospital in northern Gaza and a previous target of Israeli attacks, as announced by the Health Ministry earlier this week. Authorities said most of the 80 bodies were patients who died due to lack of care. “Any attempt to accuse Israel of burying civilians in mass graves is completely false,” the Israeli military said.
At least eight people, including eight women and eight children, were killed in central Gaza overnight in attacks that hit Zawaida, Maghazi and Deir al-Balah areas, according to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital and an Associated Press reporter who counted the bodies. 19 people died.
“Children, what is the fault of the children who have died?” said one relative. The woman stroked the face of one of the children lying on the ground.
Another round of ceasefire talks in Cairo ended without progress earlier this week.
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Sam Mednick reported from Tel Aviv and Samy Magdy from Cairo. Jack Jeffrey in Jerusalem contributed to this story.
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