close
close

The ship attacked by Yemeni Houthi rebels was full of grain for Iran, the group’s main sponsor

RAFAH: Residents of Rafah reported heavy artillery shelling and gunfire in the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city on Thursday after Israel said it had captured a strategic corridor on the Palestinian territory’s border with Egypt.
The Israeli military began its invasion of Rafah in early May despite international objections regarding the fate of Palestinian civilians seeking shelter there.
An attack over the weekend that sparked a fire and killed dozens of people in a refugee camp sparked a wave of new condemnation, including a social media campaign with the slogan “All eyes on Rafah” that was shared by tens of millions of users.
Military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari announced that Israel had taken “operational control” of the narrow border area, where he said troops had “discovered about 20 tunnels”.
Egypt, which has long acted as a mediator in the conflict and has become increasingly vocal in its criticism of the Israeli operation, rejects the claim that smuggling tunnels run beneath the buffer zone.
“Israel is using these allegations to justify continuing the operation on the Palestinian city of Rafah and prolonging the war for political reasons,” a senior Egyptian source was quoted as saying by the state-affiliated Al-Qahera News.
Egyptian officials have said a possible Israeli takeover of Philadelphia could violate the two countries’ historic 1979 peace agreement. However, there has been no official comment from Cairo since the military’s announcement.
During a visit to Beijing, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi called for increased humanitarian aid for the besieged Gaza Strip and reiterated his country’s long-standing opposition to “any attempt to force Palestinians to flee their country by force.”
Meanwhile, Chinese President Xi Jinping called on Thursday for a “broad-based, authoritative and effective international peace conference” to address the war. He received Arab heads of state, including El-Sisi, on the occasion.
On the ground in the Gaza Strip, witnesses reported fighting in the center and west of Rafah.
Witnesses said Israeli forces destroyed several buildings in the eastern areas of the city, where the Israeli invasion began on May 7. The initial focus was on the vital Rafah border crossing, a key access point for humanitarian aid.

An AFP correspondent reported artillery and gunfire in the southern Zeitun district in northern Gaza City, where witnesses saw thick clouds of smoke rising over the Jabalia and Beit Lahia refugee camps.
A steady stream of civilians have fled Rafah, carrying their belongings on their shoulders, in cars or on donkey carts.
Before the Rafah offensive began, up to 1.4 million people had sought refuge in the region, according to the United Nations. Since then, one million people have fled the region, according to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian Refugees (UNRWA).
The Palestinian Red Crescent reported late Wednesday that two of its medics were “killed by the direct bombing of an ambulance near Rafah by the Israeli occupation.”
Gaza authorities said 45 people were killed in the Israeli attack at the weekend and the subsequent fire in the camp for displaced Palestinians in Rafah. The attack led to two days of discussions in the UN Security Council.
Israel said it had carried out an attack on a Hamas compound, killing two senior members.
In the wake of the attack, Algeria submitted a draft UN resolution calling for “an immediate ceasefire respected by all parties” and the release of all hostages. However, it was unclear when the draft would be voted on.
In a phone call with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday, French President Emmanuel Macron said Paris was “determined to work with Algeria” to ensure that the Council “makes a clear statement on Rafah.”
He also called on Abbas to “implement the necessary reforms” and offered the “prospect of recognizing the State of Palestine.”
The decisions by Spain, Norway and Ireland to officially recognise the State of Palestine this week have sparked debate on the issue, and Macron said it should happen at an “appropriate time”.
According to the Health Ministry of the Hamas-controlled territory, Israel has killed at least 36,171 people, mostly civilians, in Gaza since October 7.
Israel’s National Security Advisor Tzachi Hanegbi said the war could last until the end of the year.
“We may have seven more months of fighting ahead of us to consolidate our success and achieve what we have defined as the destruction of Hamas’ power and military capabilities,” Hanegbi said.
The United States is among the countries urging Israel to refrain from a large-scale offensive on Rafah because of the danger to civilians.
However, the White House said on Tuesday that it had not yet seen any cases of Israel crossing President Joe Biden’s “red lines.”
The New York Times and CNN reported, citing weapons experts and video analysis from the scene of the Rafah attack over the weekend, that the bomb believed to have caused the deadly fire may have been a US-made GBU-39 guided bomb.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken called on Israel on Wednesday to quickly develop a post-war strategy for Gaza, stressing: “Without a plan for the day after, there will be no day after.”