In line with the intense bombing in central Gaza and the Israeli military’s demand that residents in areas such as Khan Younis and Deir al Balah evacuate, more and more Gazans are being forced south.
Most have gathered at the Rafah crossing to Egypt, which was already the most densely populated area in Gaza before. According to several human rights organizations, the situation is now desperate and people are building tent camps out of pieces of plastic and cloth on the streets.
Before the war, a Rafah had a population of 280,000 people, but now houses almost half of Gaza’s population, according to the human rights organization Human Rights Watch (HRW).
At the same time, alarms are raised about shortages of water, food, fuel and medicines.
Only way out
According to the UN, close to 85 percent of Gaza’s population, a total of 1.9 million people, have fled their homes since the outbreak of war 12 weeks ago.
The Rafah crossing is currently the only way out of Gaza, but has been impossible to cross unless you have foreign citizenship and are on special lists.
Since 2007, the Gaza Strip has been the object of a blockade, both from Israel and Egypt, which the area borders to the south. Before the war between Hamas and Israel began on October 7, there were three border crossings. Those controlled by Israel are now completely closed and everything going in or out of the Gaza Strip must pass through the Rafah crossing into Egypt.