The United Nations Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) has disclosed that about 360, 000 people have fled the Palestinian city of Rafah following an evacuation call ahead of a planned major onslaught by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF) in the ongoing war against Hamas in Gaza.
The UN agency said yesterday that people were seen streaming out of Gaza’s southernmost city over the past week, adding that at least 60,000 people have fled since Sunday alone.
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“Meanwhile, in the north, #Gaza bombardments and other evacuation orders have created more displacement & fear for thousands of families. There’s nowhere to go. There’s no safety without a #ceasefire,” UNRWA said yesterday on X.
Philippe Lazzarini, UNRWA’s Commissioner General, warned a day earlier that most people in the enclave had already moved once a month on average to avoid Israeli bombardment.
“The claim of ‘safe zones’ is false and misleading. No place is safe in #Gaza. Period,” he said.
A couple of days ago, Israel invaded eastern Rafah and captured the Rafah crossing, which it said was a strategic route that would enable its forces to defeat the remaining battalions of Hamas. This planned operation is coming at a time when top US officials have warned against an Israeli invasion of Rafah, because of civilian casualties.
It was estimated that about 1.5 million people, many of whom escaped the war in other parts of Gaza, fled to Rafah but now face the grim reality of another displacement from the city.
Israel launched the war on Hamas in Gaza after the Palestinian militants initiated a cross-border attack in Israel, which killed about 1,200 people while nearly 200 others were taken hostage.
So far, the offensive in Gaza has killed 35,000 people and injured over 70,000 others, according to information released by the Hamas-controlled health ministry.