Ignoring all kinds of warnings, occupying Israel sent Rafah tanks to the Egyptian border. Today, Tuesday, the Israeli army began to enter Rafah. In the meantime, they have taken control of the Rafah crossing or the border. This border was the main route for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza.
The army took control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing on Tuesday morning, Israeli army radio announced. Army footage showed tanks rolling through the complex and Israeli flags being raised in the Gaza Strip.
According to Reuters report, millions of displaced Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah in the face of Israeli aggression. But Israel has been announcing operations there for several weeks. Various countries, including the United Nations, have been warning since the beginning that Israel’s operation may create a humanitarian disaster there.
The released images show tanks carrying the Israeli flag entering the Palestinian side of Rafah. It has been informed that the operation will be conducted on a limited scale with specific targets.
There are basically two routes for humanitarian aid to enter Gaza. One is Rafah and the other is Keram Shalom. But two entry points have been closed by Israel, said Jens Larke, a spokesman for the UN humanitarian agency. He also said that the blockaded region has only one day’s worth of fuel.
Meanwhile, the Palestinian liberation organization Hamas has accepted the cease-fire proposal in Gaza. Ismail Haniya, head of the organization, informed mediators in Egypt and Qatar that the proposal had been accepted. However, no response has been received from Israel so far.
Meanwhile, Hamas said that Israel’s Rafahoy operation was launched with the aim of disrupting the ongoing ceasefire talks in Cairo. Egypt, the mediating country, also said the same. European Union foreign policy chief Joseph Borrell warned that a large-scale attack on Rafah would result in many civilian casualties.
Israeli media Channel-12 said in a report that Israel received Hamas’s response from the mediators. They are looking into it now. Will respond formally later.