Israeli tank shells fell in the middle of Rafah, injuring at least 25 people on Wednesday, according to doctors. Residents said an Israeli airstrike killed four people and injured 16 others in western Rafah.
The Israeli Army reported that its troops had discovered Hamas infrastructure in several locations in eastern Rafah and that it was carrying out targeted attacks on the Gaza side of the Rafah crossing, as well as airstrikes throughout the Gaza Strip.
The UN, Gazans and humanitarian groups have warned that further Israeli invasions of Rafah will trigger a humanitarian catastrophe.
A UN official said no fuel or aid had entered the Gaza Strip due to the military operation, a situation “disastrous for the humanitarian response” in the enclave, where more than half the population suffers from catastrophic famine.
Palestinians huddled in tent camps and makeshift shelters, suffering from shortages of food, water and medicine. The main maternity hospital in Rafah, where almost half of Gaza’s births take place, has stopped admitting patients, the United Nations Population Fund told Reuters on Wednesday.
“The city’s streets echo with the screams of innocent lives lost, families torn apart and homes reduced to rubble,” said Rafah Mayor Ahmed Al-Sofi, appealing for the international community to intervene.
Tags: Hamas longer concessions Israel ceasefire
