World on edge as Netanyahu orders invasion of Rafah

Global condemnation and concern mount as Benjamin Netanyahu of Israel has ordered the military to proceed with the invasion of Rafah even as Hamas accepted a Qatari-Egyptian brokered ceasefire proposal.

Netanyahu brushed off urgent warnings from the international community and Israel's close allies and ordered the military to invade the southern city overnight, right after the Palestinian resistance movement Hamas informed Qatari and Egyptian mediators that the group accepted their proposal for a ceasefire.

On Tuesday, the regime’s military said it had sent tanks into Rafah and established control over the Gaza side of the border crossing with Egypt.

Rafah is home to about 1.4 million displaced Palestinians, who have taken refuge in the border town and its surroundings after they fled their hometowns elsewhere in the territory to escape the regime's onslaught and now face another move.

UN agencies and aid groups have already warned of devastating consequences of any military assault on the cramped border city.

UN chief calls for end to Gaza ‘tragedy’

In his speech on Tuesday, UN Secretary-General Guterres urged Israel's allies to press Netanyahu to stop the war on the besieged territory.

“I appeal to all those with influence over Israel to do everything in their power to help avert even more tragedy.”

Guterres  said, “It is time for the parties to seize the opportunity and secure a deal for the sake of their own people.”

UN access to Rafah crossing ‘denied’ by Israel

In the meantime, the United Nations said the regime’s authorities have denied access to the Rafah crossing.

“We currently do not have any physical presence at the Rafah crossing as our access … has been denied,” said Jens Laerke, a spokesman for the UN’s humanitarian agency OCHA.

Rafah border closure means ‘people will die’

Mustafa Barghouti, the secretary-general of the Palestinian National Initiative, said Israel’s closure of the Rafah border crossing will have a “terrible impact” on the people of Gaza.

He said the move will deplete already scarce humanitarian aid supplies and cut off the only exit point for thousands of sick and wounded Palestinians.

“People will die,” Barghouti said. “Die because of these Israeli measures, in addition of course to the possible massacre that could take place if Israel continues its military operation in Rafah.”

“It’s a terrible disaster,” he told Al Jazeera. “This all happens at a time when Hamas declares it has accepted the ceasefire agreement.”

Israel carpet-bombs Rafah after Hamas accepts Gaza ceasefire proposal

The Israeli military intensifies carpet-bombing of Rafah city accompanied with ground advances shortly after Hamas agreed to a ceasefire proposal in Gaza.

Rafah invasion added to Israel war crime records

Turkish Vice President Cevdet Yilmaz said in a post on X that the regime’s ground operation against Rafah marks another war crime by Israel.

“By carrying out a ground attack on Rafah, just a day after Hamas approved Qatar and Egypt’s proposal for a ceasefire deal, Israel has added another to the war crimes it has committed in Palestinian territories since October 7.”

Yilmaz said Ankara vows to continue working for the Israeli leadership to be legally punished.

Another massacre of Palestinians in the making: Jordan

Jordan called for immediate, strong action by the UN Security Council to prevent another massacre in Rafah.

Foreign Minister Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi took to the social media platform on Tuesday, warning that anther “massacre of the Palestinians is in the making.”

“Israel is warning Palestinians to leave Rafah as it threatens an attack. All must act now to prevent it.”

Egypt vehemently denounces Rafah invasion

The Egyptian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that Cairo “vehemently denounces the Israeli military operation in Palestine Rafah, which has resulted in Israel controlling the Palestinian side of the border.”

The ministry deplored such dangerous escalation which threatens the lives of over one million Palestinians depending on the crossing as an artery of life.

It urged all impactful international players to intervene and exercise pressure to defuse the current crisis and offer a chance for diplomatic efforts to reach the aspired goals.

ICC urged to issue arrest warrant for Netanyahu

Rashida Rlain, the only Palestinian-American lawmaker in the US Congress, called on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to issue arrest warrants for the head of the regime and other senior Israeli officials.

Tlaib said on Tuesday ICC has to “finally hold them accountable for this genocide, as is obviously warranted by these well-documented violations of the Genocide Convention under international law.”

He said the United States is “actively participating in genocide.”

“For months, Netanyahu made his intent to invade Rafah clear, yet the majority of my colleagues and President Biden sent more weapons to enable the massacre.”

Last month, Biden authorized the transfer of over 1,000 500-pound bombs and over 1,000 small-diameter bombs to Israel, CNN cited sources familiar with the matter.

Israel exacerbating crisis by blocking aid, targeting hospitals and schools: Gaza media office

Gaza

Palestinians are human being, not pawns

Amnesty International warned Tuesday that Israel’s long-threatened ground operation in Rafah would further compound “the unspeakable suffering of the Palestinians in Gaza.”

“Palestinian civilians in Gaza are human beings, not pawns to be moved around a chessboard at the whim of the Israeli authorities.”

“The notion that displaced civilians are safe anywhere in Gaza has proved a fallacy time and again as the Israeli military has attacked areas it had previously designated as safe.”

On Monday, Israel’s military issued a call for residents and displaced people to evacuate eastern neighborhoods of Rafah.

1.5 million people ‘cannot simply vanish into thin air’: Germany

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said on X, "I warn against a major offensive on Rafah,” in a message on X.

She said, “A million people cannot simply vanish into thin air. They need protection. They need more humanitarian aid urgently… the Rafah and Kerem Shalom [Karem Abu Salem] border crossings must immediately be reopened.”

Brazil slams Israel for not respecting human rights

The Brazilian Foreign Ministry said in a statement that by invading Rafah, Tel Aviv once again “shows disregard for respecting the basic principles of human rights and humanitarian law.”

It said Israel “deliberately escalate[s] the conflict in an area where there is a high concentration of civilian population.”

Brazil urged the UN Security Council to overcome the indifference and paralysis that have allowed the humanitarian catastrophe in Gaza to deepen.

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