Israel’s military said on Monday it had begun encouraging residents of Rafah to evacuate the southern Gazan city as part of a ‘limited scope’ operation, but did not immediately confirm media reports this was part of preparation for a ground assault.

Seven months into its offensive against Hamas, Israel has said Rafah harbours thousands of the Palestinian Islamist group’s fighters and that victory is impossible without taking the city.

But with more than a million displaced Palestinians sheltering there, the prospect of a high-casualty operation worries Western powers and neighbouring Egypt.

In what appeared to be the beginning of a civilian evacuation ahead of a ground assault, the Israeli military called on Palestinians in eastern parts of Rafah to move to a nearby “humanitarian area”.

In a statement on Monday, the military said posters, text messages, phone calls and media announcements would be used to “encourage … the gradual movement of civilians in the specified areas”.

  • Mrkawfee@lemmy.worldEnglish
    28·
    7 months ago

    They know that hundreds of thousands of people aren’t able to evacuate. This is a new massacre to finish off the survivors.

  • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldEnglish
    22·
    7 months ago

    1. Go to Rafah there’s no Hamas there it’s super safe!

    2. Bomb all of Gaza to rubble with impunity (including Rafah)

    3. Hamas still not cleared from Northern or Central Gaza

    4. Whoa get out of Rafah that’s the last Hamas stronghold (ignore that Hamas is still present in the rest of Gaza) << You are here

    5. Commit Ethnic Cleansing and mass Genocide in Rafah

    6. Actually Hamas is still in the rest of Gaza Who’da thunk!! We need to continue the Genocide!

  • mlg@lemmy.worldEnglish
    18·
    7 months ago

    To where lol?

    Egypt left Palestinians to die long before this particular war started.

    KSA probably cares about them as much as Israel.

  • 5714@lemmy.dbzer0.comEnglish
    16·
    7 months ago

    Army Radio said evacuations were focused on a few peripheral districts of Rafah, from which evacuees would be directed to tent cities in nearby Khan Younis and Al Muwassi.

    For those asking whereto.

    • Linkerbaan@lemmy.worldEnglish
      14·
      7 months ago

      Which are totally not far too small and heavily under provisioned in a dry barren wasteland as has been reported for the last few weeks

  • febra@lemmy.worldEnglish
    11·
    7 months ago

    More ethnic cleansing and genocide. Nothing new in the israeli playbook.

  • Allah@lemmy.worldEnglish
    5·
    7 months ago

    GENOCIDE! GENOCIDE! they are forcefully evicting them!

    doesn’t ask them to move

    GENOCIDE! GENOCIDE! they are bombing them along with hamas!

    • dlatch@lemmy.worldEnglish
      13·
      7 months ago

      Annoying huh, international law against ethnic cleansing. You’re not even allowed to give civilians the choice between being forcibly removed or slaughtered. It’s antisemitic I tell you, what are the poor Israelis to do?

      You know they don’t have to invade Rafah, right? It’s not like ethnic cleansing is Israel’s only choice.

      • bobalot@lemmy.worldEnglish
        4·
        7 months ago

        According to that putz, the Nazis putting Jews into ghettos by force isn’t technically a crime as long as they warned them prior.

    • Tryptaminev@lemm.eeEnglish
      12·
      7 months ago

      When they listened to Israel telling them to go to safe zones, they were bombed on the way and in the alleged safe zone. Rafah was a designated safe zone. Now they are told to go into a place with even less sanitary infrastructure, water and shelter.

      Israel is always aiming at killing as many civllians as it can get away with and people like you are trying to increase that number.

      • Granbo's Holy Hotrod@lemmy.worldEnglish
        9·
        7 months ago

        The ultimate conservative Chad move. Step1. Say whatever you think gives you the most cover, usually the exact opposite of what you have planned. Step2. Do the most evil thing possible. Step3. Hide behind religion.

    • Larry@lemmy.worldEnglish
      8·
      7 months ago

      Smh cannot believe these HYPOCRITES think that massacring civilians and trying to displace them to steal their land are both bad