Warning from Brussels

EU calls for immediate end to attacks on Rafah

Israeli attack on the city of Rafah

(Bild: AFP)

The EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs, Josep Borrell, called on Israel on Wednesday to end its military operation in Rafah immediately, otherwise relations between the European Union and Israel would be severely strained. Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip nevertheless continued, with bombing raids in eastern Rafah.

Despite international criticism, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has so far maintained a ground offensive in Rafah in the south of the Gaza Strip, where more than a million people had sought shelter from the fighting.

Israel describes the city as the last bastion of the militant Palestinian organization Hamas. The military operation is also aimed at freeing hostages believed to be held there.

Last week, the Israeli military entered Rafah with tanks and ordered the residents to evacuate. According to the UN Palestinian Relief and Works Agency, almost 450,000 people have fled the city since then; thousands more set off on Wednesday.

Hundreds of thousands on the run in the Gaza Strip
According to the report, 100,000 Palestinians also fled the fighting in the northern Gaza Strip. According to UN estimates, a quarter of the 2.4 million people in the Gaza Strip are now on the run, although there are now "no safe places".

Israel's bloody reckoning after major Hamas attack
The war in the Gaza Strip was triggered by a major Hamas attack on Israel on October 7. According to Israeli figures, around 1170 people were killed and around 250 were taken hostage in the Gaza Strip. In response, Israel has since taken massive military action in the Gaza Strip. According to Hamas, more than 35,100 people have now been killed.