Israel evacuates Palestinians: is the feared Rafah offensive imminent?

Israel has begun the evacuation of Palestinian civilians from the city of Rafah in Gaza. That could be the prelude to the long-awaited offensive.

The Israeli army called on some residents of Rafah, in the south of the Gaza Strip, to leave via flyers and text messages. According to a spokesperson, this concerns about 100,000 Palestinians who live in the eastern part of the city. They were advised to seek ‘temporary’ shelter in the town of Khan Younis or the ‘humanitarian zone’ that Israel recently established in the coastal town of Al Mawasi.

It seems to be the harbinger of a large-scale attack on Rafah, where, according to the Israeli government, many Hamas militants who have fled have found shelter. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been threatening an offensive for months to smoke out what he believes is Hamas’ last stronghold. His Defense Minister, Yoav Galant, warned on Sunday that the army would launch an attack on Rafah “in the very near future.”

However, Israel is under great international pressure to withdraw its attack plans. There are great fears that the offensive will turn into a bloodbath. Rafah is home to more than 1 million Palestinian civilians fleeing Israeli attacks in the rest of the Gaza Strip. In anticipation of a ground offensive, Israel is carrying out daily air strikes on Rafah that have already killed hundreds of people.

Netanyahu reiterated on Sunday evening that he will not bow to international pressure to end the war in Gaza. “I say to world leaders: no pressure, no decision from any international forum will prevent Israel from defending itself,” the prime minister said during the Holocaust commemoration. “If Israel is forced to stand alone, then Israel will stand alone.”

The Israelis’ strong language followed the failure of ceasefire negotiations with Hamas. The Hamas delegation left the Egyptian capital Cairo after two days of deaf talks. The extremist Palestinian movement said it plans to return on Tuesday for new talks. But the statements after the failed consultation on Sunday evening show that the situation is deadlocked.

Hamas and Israel accuse each other of being responsible for the impasse. Hamas demands a definitive end to the war, while the Israeli government only wants to talk about a temporary ceasefire. Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas, accused Netanyahu of sabotaging the talks by “continuing and expanding the aggression.” As long as that happens, an agreement on the release of the approximately 130 hostages is impossible, according to Haniyeh.

The Israelis rebounded the ball. “While Israel showed willingness, Hamas continues to entrench itself in its extreme positions,” Netanyahu said. It involves the complete withdrawal of the Israeli army from the Gaza Strip and the immediate cessation of all hostilities. According to Netanyahu, the demands amount to Hamas remaining in power in Gaza. “Israel cannot accept that,” he said.

Israel also reacted angrily on Sunday to a rocket attack on the Kerem Shalom border post on the southern border with Gaza. The rockets were reportedly fired by Hamas from nearby Rafah. Three Israeli soldiers were killed in the attack. Israel immediately decided to close the border crossing. That is bad news for aid, because the majority of humanitarian aid entered Gaza via trucks via Kerem Shalom.