The city of Rafah, whose pre-war population was about 300,000, teems with homeless people living in tent camps and makeshift shelters who fled there from Israeli bombardments in areas of Gaza further north during more than four months of war.
Israel says it wants to flush out Hamas fighters from hideouts in Rafah and free Israeli hostages being held there, and is making plans to evacuate trapped Palestinian civilians. But no plan has been forthcoming and aid agencies say the displaced have nowhere else to go in the shattered territory.
Israeli tanks shelled the eastern sector of Rafah overnight, causing waves of panic, residents said.
Rafah neighbours Egypt, but Cairo has made clear it will not allow a refugee exodus over the border.
Gaza health officials announced 133 new Palestinian deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 28,473 killed and 68,146 wounded since the beginning of the conflict on Oct 7.
Supplies of food, water and other essentials are running out and diseases are spreading.
About half of Gaza’s 2.3mn people are now squeezed into Rafah.
In Cairo, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi conducted talks with CIA Director William Burns and Qatari Prime Minister HE Sheikh Mohamed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim al-Thani aimed at agreeing a Gaza truce, protecting civilians and delivering more aid into the enclave, Egypt’s state information service said.
Two AJ journalists severely wounded
Qatar-based broadcaster Al Jazeera said two of its journalists were severely wounded in an Israeli strike in Gaza’s southern city of Rafah Tuesday. Reporter Ismail Abu Omar’s life is at risk after he had his right leg amputated, while doctors are attempting to save the left one, Al Jazeera said. Cameraman Ahmad Matar was described by Al Jazeera as being in a “serious condition”. The two journalists have been admitted to the European Hospital.Erdogan arrives in Egypt Wednesday
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is set to arrive in Cairo today to meet his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, sealing a long-running rapprochement between the two men.Erdogan on Monday said the pair would discuss “every effort” to stop the “bloodshed” in the Gaza Strip, while Turkish state news agency Anadolu said the meetings would also cover economic, trade, tourism, energy and defence matters.
