Fighting continued Monday in the Gaza Strip, where Israel is threatening to continue its offensive against Hamas during Ramadan if the hostages are not released by then, including in the Rafah region in the south, where nearly a million and a half Palestinian civilians are being held.
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As hopes for a ceasefire fade, the international community is concerned about the consequences of an Israeli ground offensive in this city, supported by the closed border with Egypt, where, according to the United Nations, 1.4 million people currently live, mostly displaced people, who fled the war.
According to the Hamas Ministry of Health, which counted 107 dead in dozens of attacks in 24 hours, especially in Rafah and surrounding areas, the number of people continues to rise in the besieged Palestinian territories, where 29,092 people have been killed since the start of the war in the neighboring town of Khan Younès.
The city, which has been turned into a field of rubble, has been the center of the Israeli army's offensive for several weeks, hunting down Hamas fighters there.
The war was sparked by an unprecedented attack on October 7 by commandos from the Palestinian Islamist movement who invaded southern Israel. That attack killed more than 1,160 people, most of them civilians, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli data.
In retaliation, Israel vowed to destroy Hamas, which has been in power in Gaza since 2007, and launched an offensive that, in addition to a very high loss of life, caused massive destruction and the displacement of 1.7 million residents in total, according to the United Nations 2.4 million people and a major humanitarian crisis.
“My children are dying of hunger, they wake up crying,” a woman seeking refuge in a camp in northern Gaza told AFP. “Where can I find food for them?”
After advancing from the north of the territory, Israeli troops are now not far from Rafah, where Israel has announced it is preparing a ground offensive.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyanu called the city the “last stronghold” of Hamas, which is designated a terrorist organization by Israel, the United States and the European Union, and said he was determined to maintain “military pressure until complete victory” and the release of all continue the hostages.
He assured that the army would allow civilians to “leave the combat areas” before an attack on Rafah, without giving details.
“Minimize” civilian casualties.
“The world needs to know and Hamas leaders need to know – if our hostages are not home by Ramadan, fighting will continue everywhere, including in the Rafah region,” Benny Gantz warned on Sunday. Member of Benjamin Netanyahu's war cabinet.
“Hamas has a choice. They can surrender, free the hostages and Gaza's civilians will be able to celebrate the holiday of Ramadan, the Muslim fasting month that must begin around March 10 this year, Mr. Gantz said.
On October 7, around 250 people were kidnapped and taken to Gaza. Israel says 130 hostages are still being held there, 30 of whom are believed to have died after the release in late November thanks to a ceasefire of 105 hostages and 240 Palestinian prisoners held by Israel.
According to Mr Gantz, a land offensive in Rafah would be carried out as part of a dialogue with “American and Egyptian partners” “by facilitating the evacuation of civilians” in order to “minimize (…) as much as possible”. the number of civilian casualties.
Israel has not said where or how these civilians will be evacuated, but Egypt has expressed its opposition to any “forced relocation” of Palestinians to its territory.
“Apartheid”
After facing a barrage of fire in Gaza, the Israeli army launched a ground offensive there on October 27, killing 235 soldiers, according to the army.
On Monday, witnesses reported further fighting in Khan Younes.
The Nasser Hospital, the largest in the southern Gaza Strip, which was stormed by the Israeli army, is out of order, according to the World Health Organization and Hamas. However, Israeli authorities claimed the facility was “operational during all troop activities.”
On February 15, soldiers entered this hospital based on information about hostages being held there and arrested around a hundred people.
On Monday, the International Court of Justice (ICJ), the United Nations' highest court, began examining the legal consequences of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories since 1967 in The Hague.
This year, Israel captured the West Bank and East Jerusalem, which are still occupied, as well as Gaza, from which Israel withdrew in 2005.
“The Palestinians are suffering from colonialism and apartheid,” the head of Palestinian diplomacy, Riad Al-Maliki, told the International Court of Justice.
In Israel, the impact of the war on the economy led to a 19.4% decline in gross domestic product (GDP) in the final quarter of 2023, according to official figures released on Monday.