Children light candles in protest against Israel and in solidarity with Palestinians in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, on the Mediterranean Corniche in Beirut, Lebanon, on Monday, May 27, 2024. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged on Monday that it was a “tragic mistake” had been made. At least 45 people were killed in a fire at a camp for displaced Palestinians following an Israeli attack on the town of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, according to local officials. , Image Source: AP
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu admitted on Monday that a “tragic mistake” was made after an Israeli attack in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah set fire to a camp for displaced Palestinians and killed at least 45 people, according to local officials. . ,
Israel has faced growing international criticism over its war with Hamas, with even some of its closest allies, notably the United States, expressing anger over the killing of civilians.
Israel insists it adheres to international law, even as it faces scrutiny in the world’s highest courts, one of which last week called for a halt to the offensive in Rafah.
The Israeli military earlier said it had launched an investigation into the killing of civilians after it attacked a Hamas facility and killed two senior militants.
Sunday night’s attack, which appears to be one of the deadliest attacks of the war, helped bring the total number of Palestinians killed in the war to more than 36,000, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which includes combatants and non-combatants in its numbers. -Does not differentiate between combatants. ,
“Despite our best efforts not to harm innocent civilians, a tragic mistake was made last night,” Netanyahu said in a speech to the Israeli parliament on Monday.
“We are investigating the incident and will reach a conclusion as this is our policy,” he said.
Muhammad Abu Assa, who arrived at the crash site in the Tal al-Sultan neighborhood in the country’s northwest, said rescue workers “pulled out people who were in unbearable conditions.” “We pulled out the children who were in pieces. We pulled out the youth and the elderly,” he said.
According to the Gaza Health Ministry and the Palestinian Red Crescent Rescue Service, at least 45 people were killed. The ministry said the dead included at least 12 women, eight children and three elderly people and three other bodies were burnt beyond recognition.
In a separate development, the Egyptian army said one of its soldiers was shot dead during a firefight in the Rafah area, without giving further details.
Israel said it was in contact with Egyptian authorities, and both sides said they were investigating.
Rafah, the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip on the border with Egypt, was home to more than one million people – almost half of Gaza’s population – displaced from other parts of the Strip.
Most people have fled again after Israel reported limited incursions there earlier this month. Lakhs of people are crowded in miserable camps in and around the city.
Mr Netanyahu says Israel must destroy the remaining Hamas brigades in Rafah. On Sunday, the armed movement began firing rockets from the city toward Israel’s densely populated center, setting off air raid sirens, but causing no casualties.
The attack on Rafah brought a new wave of condemnation, even from some of Israel’s closest allies.
French President Emmanuel Macron said on Channel X, “These operations must stop. There is no safe zone for Palestinian civilians in Rafah. I call for full respect for international law and an immediate ceasefire.” Italian Defense Minister Guido Crosetto said in a televised appearance. Said in the interview: Such bombings “spread hatred, root out hatred that will include their children and grandchildren.” Qatar, the main mediator between Israel and Hamas in efforts to secure a ceasefire and the release of hostages held by Hamas, said the attack on Rafah could “complicate” negotiations.
The talks, which appear to be resuming, have repeatedly faltered over Hamas demands for a permanent ceasefire and the withdrawal of Israeli forces, which Israeli leaders have publicly rejected.
Neighboring Egypt and Jordan, which made peace with Israel decades ago, also condemned the Rafah attack. The Egyptian Foreign Ministry described it as “a new and gross violation of the rules of international humanitarian law.” The Jordanian Foreign Ministry described what happened as a “war crime”. The IDF’s chief legal officer said authorities were considering the attacks and that the military regretted the loss of civilian lives. Military Prosecutor General Major General Yifat Tomer Yerushalmi said such incidents occur “in a war of this scope and intensity.”
Speaking at a conference of Israeli lawyers, Tomer Yerushalmi said Israel had opened 70 criminal investigations into incidents suspected of violating international law, including the killing of civilians, the conditions at a detention facility holding suspected Palestinian activists, And involves the murder of some prisoners. In Israeli prisons. Incidents of “violence, property crimes and looting” are also being investigated, he said.
Israel has always maintained that it has an independent judiciary capable of investigating violations and prosecuting their perpetrators. But human rights groups say Israeli authorities routinely fail to fully investigate acts of violence against Palestinians, and even when soldiers are held accountable, the punishment is usually light.
Israel has denied genocide charges brought against it by South Africa in the International Court of Justice. Last week, the court ordered Israel to stop its attack on Rafah, saying it has no authority to enforce the ruling.
Separately, the ICC prosecutor is seeking arrest warrants against Mr Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant, as well as three Hamas leaders, for alleged war-related crimes.
Israel says it is trying its best to abide by the laws of war, and says it faces an enemy that does not adhere to such commitments, is present in civilian areas and Refuses to release Israeli hostages unconditionally.
Hamas began the war with an attack on Israel on October 7, during which Palestinian militants killed about 1,200 people, most of them civilians, and took about 250 hostage. Hamas still holds about 100 hostages and the remains of about 30 others after most were released during last year’s ceasefire.
About 80% of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have fled their homes, hunger is widespread and UN officials say parts of the strip are suffering from famine.
