Israel faces harsh international criticism for the Rafah attack

International pressure continues to mount against Israel and its plans for an offensive in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza filled with Palestinian refugees.

Feb 12, 2024 - 08:16
Israel faces harsh international criticism for the Rafah attack
Israel faces harsh international criticism for the Rafah attack

 British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said that "over half of the population of Gaza has taken refuge in this area", while Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot said that there could be "many civilian casualties". Saudi Arabia warned of very serious consequences if the city of Rafah was attacked. Hamas leaders in Gaza said that if Israel attacks Rafah, there could be tens of thousands of civilian casualties. Many Gazans have ended up in Rafah after being forced from their homes. The warnings came a day after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered his army to prepare to evacuate civilians from the southern Gaza city of Rafah. The United States has already warned Israel that an invasion of Rafah as part of its assault on Gaza would be a "disaster", while the EU and UN expressed their concerns.

 The Financial Times newspaper reported on Monday morning that the Zionist regime did not have a specific plan to attack Rafah, contrary to what it had announced, and was confused. According to   Financial Times, despite the public talk that an attack on Rafah is approaching, there are still no plans for Israel to launch an operation in Rafah. According to this knowledgeable source, Israelis do not know what they want to do and are very confused about Rafah. Meanwhile, World Health Organization President Tedros Adhanom Gebreyesus stated that reports about the possible attack of the Zionist regime on Rafah on Sunday evening are extremely worrying and emphasized: "Any Israeli attack on Rafah will have devastating consequences." The head of the World Health Organization wrote on social media account X: "Israel's attack on Rafah could have devastating consequences for 1.4 million Palestinians who have nowhere else to go."

 America asked Israel to refrain from military operations and attacks in Rafah, especially during the holy month of Ramadan. The Zionist Kan Network reported that the US believes that any Israeli military operation in Rafah during the month of Ramadan will escalate tension throughout the region. Earlier, the Arab League and the Arab countries had warned of the dangerous consequences of this Zionist action in Rafah. According to the Al-Mayadeen network, "Ahmed Abul Ghait", the Secretary General of the Arab League, warned of the dangerous consequences of the attack of the Israeli occupier in the Rafah area in the south of Gaza. On the other hand, Saudi Arabia and the Hamas movement issued separate statements warning of the dangerous consequences of the attack and bombardment of the city of Rafah by the army of the Zionist regime. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia issued a statement warning of the very dangerous consequences of the attack and the targeting of the city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip, which is the last refuge of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian civilians who were forced to flee there for due to the brutal attacks of the Israeli army. In this statement, Riyadh, strongly condemning the barbaric attacks of the Zionist regime against the Palestinians and the forced displacement of the residents of Gaza, declared its firm opposition to this goal of the Zionist regime. In this statement, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Saudi Arabia once again called for an immediate ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and deemed it necessary to hold an immediate meeting of the United Nations Security Council to prevent a disaster. humanitarian aid in Gaza by the Zionist regime.

Hamas also announced in a statement: We are concerned about the risk of committing a massive and horrific crime of genocide by the Israeli occupation regime in the city of Rafah, which houses more than 1.4 million displaced Palestinian citizens. We warn that these displaced people, as a result of the continued attacks and brutal terrorist crimes of the Zionist occupiers, are living in the worst conditions. Even Jordan's Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced its complete opposition to the forced migration of Palestinians inside and outside the country and demanded an immediate end to the conflict in the region. Also, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the United Arab Emirates announced: Abu Dhabi warns against any Israeli move for military operations in Rafah, which is full of Palestinian refugees. Qatar also warned of a humanitarian disaster during the Zionist regime's attack on the city of Rafah and asked the Security Council to take measures to prevent genocide against Palestinians in this city. Qatar's Ministry of Foreign Affairs warned of a humanitarian disaster in the event of an Israeli attack on the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah. The Ministry emphasized: We ask the UN Security Council to take immediate measures to prevent the Zionist attack on Rafah and the genocide against the Palestinians in this city. Netanyahu recently announced that ground operations in Rafah will begin within the next two weeks. The prime minister of the Zionist regime has demanded the destruction of the military battalions of the Hamas movement in Rafah before the month of Ramadan. At the same time, Channel 12 of the Zionist regime has also reported on the disagreement between Netanyahu and "Herzi Halevi", the chief of the General Staff of the army of this regime, about a possible operation in Rafah.