Fears grow for civilians in Rafah

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Opinion

Israel faces even more international condemnation and outrage if it goes ahead with its planned invasion of Rafah city in Gaza, but that won’t stop Benjamin Netanyahu.

The Israeli prime minister has said he is determined to press on with a ground offensive in the city against Hamas, to strike its remaining battalions and its leadership. He is vowing total victory over Hamas, having told Israel’s military a week ago to prepare to invade Rafah.

But even Israel’s strongest supporters are urging restraint.

French President Emmanuel Macron called Netanyahu this week urging him not to enter Rafah, saying it could “only lead to a humanitarian disaster of a new magnitude”.

The United States is Israel’s most important ally and US President Joe Biden has said an offensive in Rafah should not proceed without a credible plan for ensuring the safety of the  civilians sheltering there.

He is reported to have said in private conversations that Netanyahu was giving him hell, was impossible to work with, and was “a pain in my ass”, according to NBC News.

The situation poses a problem for Biden for the coming presidential election. His party the Democrats have always had strong support from the millions of American Jews, but polling has shown he is losing support among young people, blacks and progressives.

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a post on X that New Zealand was extremely concerned and was “part of an overwhelming international consensus urging Israel to stop”.

Peters said New Zealand took careful note of the International Court of Justice’s decision on the case brought by South Africa, requiring Israel to comply with its obligations under the Genocide Convention. New Zealand’s position was that all of the court’s decisions, including on provisional measures, were binding.

Peters’ comments have failed to satisfy the large number wanting him to condemn Israel outright.

In a bleak statement, the UN’s humanitarian chief Martin Griffiths said over a million people were crammed into Rafah staring death in the face. An assault on the city could lead to a “slaughter”, he said.

Before the war Rafah, which is on Gaza’s border with Egypt, had a population of 250,000. But after Israel ordered civilians to evacuate to the south, its population has swelled to an estimated 1.5 million, many of them living in tents.

The city has already suffered from Israeli air strikes which have killed hundreds, including 67 on one day earlier this week.

However, Netanyahu is nothing if not intransigent. The people of Rafah are in grave danger.