Waiting for the major attack in Rafah

The situation in the south of the Gaza Strip is becoming increasingly precarious: bombings are increasing. Israel has reported the discovery of a Hamas tunnel under the former UNRWA headquarters. Meanwhile, criticism of the Israeli government is increasing.

The older woman wearing a headscarf can barely walk because of her desperation. “My dear sister,” she cries. Supported by another woman, she limps into the courtyard of Al-Najjar Hospital in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip. Here lie the dead, wrapped in cloths, who were killed in an air strike by the Israeli army.

At least 20 people were killed in this attack the day before on two houses in the border town alone, according to the Hamas-run health ministry. According to the terrorist organization, the number of deaths has risen to more than 27,900 since the start of the war.

“We can’t take it anymore. We have women and children. They said Rafah was safe. But it’s not. There are attacks everywhere. We want the war to stop. We can’t take it anymore,” says resident Mohammed Saydam. He is one of more than a million people who have sought refuge here in the border town with Egypt. Before the war, 170,000 people lived in Rafah.

“Where should I go? There’s nothing left”

A ARD– Employee reports that refugee tents are blocking the roads everywhere in Rafah. The sheer number of people would become a trap in the event of a mass exodus in the event of a major attack by the Israeli army. Most of the people in the tents would continue to endure and starve. Only a few pack, like 35-year-old Abu Ahmed from central Gaza.

“I’m scared and want to leave the city,” he says. “Five days ago they were bombing here every day. Two or three weeks ago it was still quiet and safe.” The air strikes have increased in recent days. “You can tell it’s getting serious. They’re coming here. I’m leaving town.”

He wanted to go back to his house in the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. He just wanted to sit there on the rubble of his house, put up a tent – and die there. “Where should we go?” he asks. “I want someone to understand me. Where should I go? There’s nothing left.”

Israel: Tunnel discovered under UNRWA headquarters

Fighting continued throughout the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military released a video showing a Hamas tunnel, a command center with a server room under the headquarters of the UN refugee agency UNWRA.

Meanwhile, criticism of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is growing. He has called on the military to develop an evacuation plan for Rafah and to attack Hamas in the city. In the heart of Tel Aviv, thousands of people protested against the government in the evening, calling for new elections and for the hostages to be freed. There were also arrests. The crowd sang the Israeli national anthem.

Criticism of Netanyahu’s conduct of the war

Even former high-ranking military officials such as Amos Gilad, who was once director of political affairs in the Defense Ministry in Israel, does not hold back about his opinion on Netanyahu’s conduct of the war and the plans to attack Rafah. Gilad said on Israeli television: “That’s not how you run a state. When you make a (attack) plan, you don’t share it with the whole world and with Hamas.” The Prime Minister could convene the War or Security Cabinet, he should consult. “Then a plan is drawn up and then the order is given, which, by the way, should remain secret.”

Numerous critics – including the US State Department, EU and UN representatives – accuse the Israeli government of acting haphazardly in Gaza and risking a disaster that could cost thousands of lives.