At least 45 people, including children, were killed at a refugee camp in the Gaza city of Rafah following an Israeli airstrike. The incident, which came just days after the International Court of Justice ordered Israel to halt its operations in Rafah, sparked international outrage, deepening the global isolation faced by Israel due to the war in Gaza.
Hours after Hamas fired a barrage of rockets into the Tel Aviv region, most of which were intercepted, Israel launched its own attack on Rafah late Sunday night.
Israeli forces continued their assault on the border town – previously considered the Strip’s last refuge – despite an order issued by the UN Supreme Court last week to halt their operations there.
All eyes are on Rafah
“All eyes on Rafah” is a phrase referring to the ongoing carnage in Gaza city. The phrase has become trending on social media as global support for Palestinians affected by Israeli attacks has grown.
Several celebrities shared messages of support using the hashtag #AllEyesOnRafah. The phrase has gained momentum as a call to raise awareness about the ongoing war.
The Rafah crossing was a main entry point for humanitarian aid before Israel intensified its military offensive on the Gaza side of the border earlier this month and took control of the crossing.
The fighting in Rafah has caused more than one million Palestinians to flee, most of whom have already been displaced by the war between Israel and Hamas.
Palestinians say they are vulnerable to Israeli attacks wherever they go, and have been moving up and down the Gaza Strip over the past few months.
Hundreds of thousands of people fled south to Rafah when the Israeli military ordered residents of the north to evacuate before moving into central Gaza and the southern town of Khan Younis.
The Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said in a statement that only one facility in Rafah was functioning due to Israeli bombing of health facilities and their surroundings.
Humanitarian organisations have warned of a deepening crisis in Gaza after fighting in Rafah shut down the Strip’s main aid routes.
Long-threatened Israeli incursion into Rafah
The Rafah attack sparked renewed anger and condemnation from world leaders. However, Israel has vowed to continue attacking Rafah despite global condemnation and US warnings.
The United Nations has long warned of an impending famine, especially in the northern Gaza Strip. Since the incursion into Rafah, the UN Secretary-General said he had become increasingly concerned about malnutrition in the south.
The Israeli military claimed its aircraft struck a Hamas compound in Rafah, killing two senior Hamas activists, Yassin Rabia and Khaled al-Najjar. It acknowledged reports of civilian casualties due to the raid and subsequent fire, noting that the incident was under investigation.
The United States is under increasing pressure to take a more assertive stance following the deadly attack in Gaza City. Questions are being raised about how much longer President Joe Biden can tolerate the Israeli assault on Rafah, when the International Court of Justice – the UN’s highest court, of which the United States and Israel are members – has ordered a halt to the assault.
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Security officials in Gaza said Israeli tanks were now also present “in the centre and southwest of Rafah”.
The war in Gaza began on October 7 after a Hamas attack on southern Israel killed more than 1,170 people, most of them civilians. Israeli retaliatory strikes have killed at least 36,096 people in Gaza.
