In the written statement made by the Egyptian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, it was noted that the statements of senior officials in the Israeli government that there would be a military operation in the city of Rafah in the south of Gaza were firmly rejected.
“THERE WILL BE TERRIBLE CONSEQUENCES”
In the statement, Israel was warned that a possible land attack on the city would have dire consequences, and it was emphasized that all regional and international efforts should be combined to prevent the city, where more than 1.4 million people have taken shelter, from being targeted, as it is the last safe zone in Gaza.
The statement noted that targeting the city of Rafah, blocking humanitarian aid and displacing the Palestinian people is a clear violation of international human rights and relevant resolutions of the United Nations (UN), and stated that Egypt will continue its contacts with all parties to reach a ceasefire and exchange prisoners.
The statement also asked the international community to pressure Israel to respond positively to the efforts made and not to escalate tensions further.
STATEMENT FROM THE WHITE HOUSE
On the other hand, the White House made a statement: “Biden conveyed to Netanyahu that he should not start a military operation without a credible plan to ensure the safety of more than one million people in Rafah.”
ATTACK SIGNALS FROM ISRAEL TO THE CITY OF PROSPERITY
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, in his statement during his visit to Israeli troops in the Khan Yunis region of the Gaza Strip on February 1, said that they would move their land attacks to the city of Rafah on the Egyptian border.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu also signaled in his statement on February 4 that they would launch a land attack on the city of Rafah.
In the news published by Israeli state television KAN on February 6, based on political sources, it was stated that the city of Rafah would be evacuated before starting operations.
In the statement made by the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office on February 9, it was noted that Netanyahu instructed the army and security organization to prepare the necessary plan to attack the south of the Gaza Strip and displace approximately 1.5 million Palestinians who have taken refuge there.
Finally, it was reported today that Israeli Chief of General Staff Herzi Halevi approved three times the attack on the city of Rafah, where approximately 1.5 million people who fled Israel’s attacks in Gaza took shelter, and that he was waiting for the green light from the government for the attack.
PROSPERITY CITY
The city of Rafah, located on the border with Egypt in the south of the Gaza Strip, hosts approximately half the population of Gaza, which has a population of 2.3 million, with thousands of people displaced due to Israeli attacks taking shelter in the city.
Israeli forces target the city of Rafah with frequent air strikes. It is feared that civilians will have no shelter in the Gaza Strip if Israel launches a land attack on the city of Rafah.
In Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip since October 7, 28 thousand 176 Palestinians, including at least 12 thousand children and 8 thousand 190 women, were killed and 67 thousand 784 people were injured.
While it is reported that there are still thousands of dead under the rubble, civilian infrastructure is also being destroyed by targeting hospitals and educational institutions where people took shelter.
Source: AA
