On the 236th day of the war, the IDF confirmed that soldiers went into action in Rafah along the ‘Philadelphia Corridor’ – which runs parallel to the border with Egypt – for “targeted actions” and “close combat” with Hamas militiamen and against “terrorist targets”.
Israeli troops and tanks were seen in the center of Rafah, the last city in the south of the Strip on which IDF operations have been concentrated for weeks. The news was reported by local residents reported by Reuters and other media. But what sparked a media mystery was the news – spread by sources of the Hamas Civil Protection of the Strip and by doctors – of a new Israeli attack “on the tents” of the humanitarian zone of a-Mawasi which caused the death of 21 Palestinians.
A raid strongly denied by the IDF: “Contrary to reports in the last few hours, the army did not strike in the humanitarian area of A-Mawasi”, west of Rafah.
UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres meanwhile condemned “in the strongest terms” the air strikes on Rafah and said he was “heartbroken by the images of people killed and injured, including many young children. The horror and suffering must cease immediately.”
The Biden administration is still evaluating whether the Israeli attack on Rafah constitutes a violation of the “red line” suggested by the head of the White House. According to UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, around one million people “have fled” from Rafah in the last three weeks, without having “a safe place to go amid the bombing, lack of food and water, piles of waste and inadequate living conditions”.
Meanwhile, in the diplomatic battle unleashed after the recognition of the Palestinian state by Spain, Ireland and Norway, Foreign Minister Israel Katz has once again attacked Madrid. On “Prime Minister Sanchez – he continued – if you do not fire your deputy and announce the recognition of a Palestinian state, you are complicit in instigating Jewish genocide and war crimes”. While the field does not seem to leave room for hope, news could come from the possible negotiations on which Egypt, Qatar and the USA are pushing hard. According to media reports, Israel has presented mediators with a more toned-down “official written and updated” proposal on a possible agreement with Hamas for the release of the hostages.
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