An Israeli offensive on the southern city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip “would exponentially increase what is already a humanitarian nightmare,” warned UN chief Antonio Guterres on Thursday.
“Half of Gaza’s population is now crammed into Rafah with nowhere to go,” Guterres said on X.
“Reports that the Israeli military intends to focus next on Rafah are alarming. Such an action would exponentially increase what is already a humanitarian nightmare with untold regional consequences,” he added.
More than half of the Gaza Strip’s 2.3 million people have fled to Rafah, heeding Israeli evacuation orders ahead of the military’s expanding ground offensive. Evacuation orders now cover two-thirds of the tiny besieged enclave.
Even in areas of refuge, such as Rafah, Israel routinely launches air strikes against what it says are Hamas targets.
Israeli ground forces are still focusing on the city of Khan Younis, just north of Rafah, but Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly warned this week that Rafah would be next, creating panic among hundreds of thousands of displaced people.
