Assault on
that invading Rafah will derail efforts by international mediators to broker a cease-fire. Days earlier, Hamas had been discussing a U.S.-backed proposal that reportedly raised the possibility of an end to the war and a pullout of Israeli troops in return for the release of all hostages held by the group. Israeli officials have rejected that trade-off, vowing to continue their campaign until Hamas is destroyed.
Mr Netanyahu said yesterday that seizing Rafah, which Israel says is the last significant Hamas stronghold in Gaza, is vital to ensure the militants cannot rebuild their military capabilities and repeat the attack on Israel that triggered the war.
Lieutenant Colonel Nadav Shoshani, an army spokesman, said about 100,000 people were being ordered to move from parts of Rafah to a nearby Israel-declared humanitarian zone called Muwasi, a makeshift camp on the coast. He said Israel has expanded the size of the zone and that it included tents, food, water and field hospitals.
Around 450,000 displaced Palestinians
are already sheltering in Muwasi. The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said it has been providing them with aid but conditions are squalid, with few toilets or sanitation facilities in the largely rural area.
Attack
Israeli military leaflets were dropped with maps detailing a number of eastern neighbourhoods of Rafah to evacuate, warning that an attack was imminent and anyone who stays “puts themselves and their family members in danger”.
UNRWA will not evacuate from Rafah so it can continue to provide aid to those who stay behind, said Scott Anderson, the agency’s director in Gaza.
“We will provide aid to people wherever they choose to be,” he said.
The UN says an attack on Rafah could disrupt the distribution of aid keeping Palestinians alive across Gaza. The Rafah crossing into Egypt, a main entry point for aid to Gaza, lies in the evacuation zone. The crossing remained open on Monday after the Israeli order.
ON THE PROWL: Israeli army tanks take position in southern Israel near Gaza