[‘At the southernmost tip of the Gaza Strip, a tent village of refugees located in Rafah is pictured. The Israeli military has issued evacuation orders for civilians in some areas of Rafah, known as the “last haven of refugees,” prompting observations that a ground operation is imminent in the area.’,
‘Amidst the deadlock in ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas, the Israeli military ordered civilian evacuation in some areas of Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip, on the 6th local time. Speculation that the Israeli military’s ground operation, which has been announced several times in advance, is imminent, and concerns about an impending “disaster” are growing.’,
‘On that day, the Israeli military distributed leaflets to Palestinian refugees residing in eastern Rafah, directing them to evacuate to the refugee camps of Khan Yunis in the north and Al-Mawasi in the northwest.’,
‘The Israeli military also posted a map guiding the evacuation route on the social networking service X (formerly Twitter), stating, “With government approval, we urge civilians in eastern Rafah to evacuate to safe areas temporarily.” The military also stated that evacuation orders would be communicated through leaflets in Arabic, phone calls, text messages, and broadcasts.’,
‘Relief organizations operating in the Gaza Strip have also reportedly received evacuation orders from the Israeli military. This order was issued following airstrikes by the Israeli military on Rafah, which resulted in the deaths of 22 people, including eight children.’,
‘Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant reportedly informed U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin of the Rafah attack by phone the night before, stating that there was “no choice.”‘,
‘The Israeli government has stated that it will proceed with ground operations in Rafah despite ongoing ceasefire negotiations. As the international community expressed concerns about a large-scale catastrophe, Israel announced that it would evacuate civilians before the attack commences. Therefore, the evacuation order has been interpreted as a signal of the imminent ground operation.’,
‘The issue is that even if civilian evacuations are carried out, it may not be enough to prevent harm. The Israeli military is known to have established a tent city near Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip that can accommodate around 500,000 people, but this is woefully inadequate to accommodate the 1.4 million refugees in Rafah. Additionally, residential areas in several cities, including Khan Yunis, have been destroyed due to prolonged bombardment. Israel recently notified the U.S. government of its civilian evacuation plan in Rafah, but the U.S. government reportedly expressed concerns that the plan was insufficient to prevent civilian casualties.’,
‘The bigger problem is that the Israeli military has failed to ensure the safety of refugees despite designating “safe zones” and “evacuation routes.” After the outbreak of the war in October last year, Israel has conducted ground operations in the Gaza Strip except for Rafah for seven months, and each time evacuation orders were issued, civilians continued to be harmed, including being hit by airstrikes while fleeing.’,
‘Arab media outlet Al Jazeera pointed out, “All the evacuation areas designated by the Israeli military, including Al-Mawasi and Khan Yunis, have not been safe for refugees.” The UK Guardian also reported, “Despite being designated as a ‘safe zone’ by the Israeli military, Al-Mawasi was unable to avoid attacks. Last month, an Israeli tank shelled a residential area in Al-Mawasi where members of Doctors Without Borders and their families were evacuating, resulting in two deaths and eight injuries.’,
‘However, it is still unclear whether this order marks the beginning of a full-fledged ground operation. Israeli Army spokesman Lt. Col. Nadav Shoham informed the AP news agency that around 100,000 residents of the eastern Rafah area received evacuation orders and that the Israeli military is preparing for “limited operations.” He refused to confirm whether this order signifies the start of a widespread military operation in Rafah.’,
‘Located at the southernmost tip of the Gaza Strip near the Egyptian border, Rafah is where over half of the entire population of the Gaza Strip (approximately 2.3 million) has gathered, earning it the nickname “the last refuge.” The international community has warned that a ground operation in Rafah could become a “catastrophe.”‘,
‘In recent days, Israel has repeatedly stated that it will soon initiate an attack on Rafah. Defense Minister Gallant stated the previous day that when Hamas fired over ten rockets toward the Kerem Shalom checkpoint in southern Israel, resulting in the deaths of three soldiers, Hamas appeared to be unwilling to ceasefire, prompting Israel to announce the imminent commencement of a military operation in Rafah. After Hamas fired rockets, the Israeli military launched airstrikes on residential areas in Rafah eleven times, resulting in casualties.’,
‘A banner thanking students from Columbia University in the United States who staged a protest walk-through at a refugee camp in Rafah, featuring children, is pictured. UPI News’,
‘Ceasefire negotiations, which resumed in Cairo on the 4th, are once again on the verge of falling apart. While both Israel and Hamas have reportedly agreed on many conditions, such as a hostage/prisoner exchange, leading to high expectations for the negotiation to be completed at one point, negotiations are currently on hold due to staunch disagreements over the issue of disarmament. Hamas, which sent a delegation to Cairo, has left for Doha, Qatar, for consultation with its leadership and plans to return to the negotiation table on the 7th. Israel has not yet sent a negotiation delegation.’,
‘In this situation, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu emphasized through a video message on the 5th that “Under any circumstances, we cannot accept ending military operations and the demand for Gazan demilitarization.” If a ground operation in Rafah begins in this situation, the negotiations are highly likely to collapse.’,
‘An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, stated that until recently, both sides were close to agreeing on a ceasefire, but when Prime Minister Netanyahu announced that Israel would proceed with the attack on Rafah regardless of the ceasefire agreement, and Hamas set “an end to the attack on Rafah during the ceasefire” as a condition, the negotiation atmosphere soured, as reported by The New York Times. Hamas senior official Moussa Abu Marzouk also said, “We were very close to an agreement, but the agreement was suspended due to Netanyahu’s remarks.”‘,
‘Prime Minister Netanyahu also reiterated during a Holocaust remembrance ceremony held on that day, “If Israel has to stand alone, it will stand alone,” indicating that Israel will not yield to international pressure for a ceasefire.’]
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