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Biden Warns Israel Not to Attack Rafah without Plan to Protect Civilians

Palestinians line up for a free meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians line up for a free meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024. (AP)
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Biden Warns Israel Not to Attack Rafah without Plan to Protect Civilians

Palestinians line up for a free meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians line up for a free meal in Rafah, Gaza Strip, Friday, Feb. 16, 2024. (AP)

President Joe Biden has again cautioned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against moving forward with a military operation into Gaza's southernmost city of Rafah without a “credible and executable plan” to protect around 1.4 million Palestinians sheltering there.

The vast majority have fled fighting in other areas of Gaza, and hundreds of thousands are living in sprawling tent camps.

However, Netanyahu vowed early on Friday to reject “international dictates” on a long-term resolution of Israel's conflict with the Palestinians.

Two Israeli airstrikes on Rafah overnight killed at least 13 people, including nine members of the same family, according to hospital officials and relatives.

The number of Palestinians killed during the war in Gaza has surpassed 28,000 people, according to the Health Ministry in Gaza. A quarter of Gaza’s residents are starving. About 1,200 people, mostly civilians, were killed and around 250 abducted in Hamas' attack on Israel on Oct. 7 that sparked the war.

Israel’s defense minister said Israel is “thoroughly planning” its promised ground invasion of Rafah.

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told reporters Friday that Rafah is “the next Hamas center of gravity” that Israel plans on targeting.

“We are thoroughly planning future operations in Rafah, which is a significant Hamas stronghold,” he said.

He declined to say when the operation might begin.

As he spoke, Israel pressed ahead with its operation in the nearby southern city of Khan Younis, where troops have focused on its main hospital.

Gallant said a total of 70 militants have been arrested in the hospital. He alleged 20 of them participated in the Oct. 7 cross-border attack that triggered the war.

He added that Israel has “no intention” of forcing Palestinian civilians into Egypt.

“The state of Israel has no intention of evacuating Palestinian civilians to Egypt,” he said. “We respect and value our peace agreement with Egypt, which is a cornerstone of stability in the region as well as an important partner.”

The United Nations chief warned that an all-out offense by Israel on southern Gaza city of Rafah would be devastating for Palestinian civilians there.

Secretary-General António Guterres called the situation in Gaza “an appalling indictment of the deadlock in global relations” and said the UN's humanitarian aid operation there is barely functioning.

“Rafah is at the core of the entire humanitarian aid operation,” Guterres said in an opening speech at the Munich Security Conference.

He said that humanitarian workers in Gaza are working under “unimaginable conditions” that include live fire, Israeli restrictions and the breakdown of public order.

“An all-out offensive on the city would be devastating” for the Palestinian civilians living there, he added.

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Arab World

Iran Warns US, Israel over Syria, May Send ‘Advisors’ to Aleppo

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks at parliament. (Iranian presidency)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks at parliament. (Iranian presidency)
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Iran Warns US, Israel over Syria, May Send ‘Advisors’ to Aleppo

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks at parliament. (Iranian presidency)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian speaks at parliament. (Iranian presidency)

Iran warned on Sunday the United States and Israel against exploiting the situation in Syria, hinting that it may send “advisory” forces from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards to Aleppo city if the field developments demand it.

Speaking at a parliament session, President Masoud Pezeshkian called on Islamic countries to “resolve the problems in Syria” and prevent foreign meddling in its affairs.

“We hope countries in the region won’t allow the US and Israel to exploit internal conflicts inside any Islamic country,” he added.

“The parties expanding the war and destruction are the same ones preaching about peace, human rights and humanity,” he remarked.

On Israel’s war on Gaza and Lebanon, Pezeshkian noted: “Israel has killed tens of thousands of children and the parties preaching human rights have stood idly by.”

“We don’t want war or destruction. We have exerted efforts to resolve our problems with neighbors and we have worked on improving our ties with various countries,” he went on to say.

Iran has no ambitions in other countries, he declared. “We believe that the countries of the region can ensure security in the region without the need for foreign powers,” he added.

Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, meanwhile, described the developments in Syria as a “Zionist-American plot aimed at destabilizing the region” given the timing of the unrest soon after the ceasefire in Lebanon took effect.

“It is urgent for the reasonable voices in the region to thwart this dangerous conspiracy and confront the terrorists in Syria and the region,” he demanded, warning the US and its ally Israel that “using the terrorism card will come back to haunt them.”

MP Esmaeil Kousari said Iran may send “advisory” forces to Syria, but this depends on the developments on the ground and the “decisions of the Israeli leadership.”

Iran has often called its combat operations in Syria as “advisory” roles.

Kousari, who is also a member of the IRGC, said the attacks in Aleppo are an “American and Israeli plan to sever the Iranian supply route to Hezbollah” in Lebanon.

He noted that it was no coincidence that the attack took place soon after the ceasefire in Lebanon was declared, predicting the Israel will launch a new offensive in Lebanon as soon as the 60-day truce is over.

He called on the forces allied to Iran to fight the opposition factions in Syria to prevent them from forming permanent bases in Aleppo and northern Syria. “They must be defeated to ensure the link between Syria and Hezbollah remains,” he urged.

He acknowledged that the number of Iranian advisors in Syria had dropped significantly in recent years, saying that had it been greater, they would have acted immediately against the opposition fighters.

Iranian-backed militias entered Syria overnight from Iraq and were heading to northern Syria to beef up beleaguered Syrian army forces battling opposition fighters, according to two Syrian army sources, reported Reuters on Monday.

Dozens of Iran-aligned Iraqi Popular Mobilization Forces (PMF) fighters from Iraq also crossed into Syria through a military route near Al-Bukamal crossing, a senior Syrian army source told Reuters.

Iran sent thousands of Shiite militias to Syria during the Syrian war and, alongside Russia with its air power, enabled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad to crush the opposition and regain most of his territory.

Israel has also in recent months stepped up its strikes on Iranian bases in Syria while also waging an offensive in Lebanon which it says has weakened Hezbollah and its military capabilities.