ANKARA, May 28 (Bernama-Anadolu) – The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) on Tuesday said that for the past three weeks, nearly 1 million Palestinians have fled Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, amid ongoing Israeli incursion into the city, Anadolu Agency (AA) reported.
In a statement on its X, UNRWA said the mass fleeing of people from Rafah takes place despite "nowhere safe to go and amidst bombardment, lack of food and water”.
“Day after day, providing assistance and protection becomes nearly impossible,” it said and reiterated its call for an immediate cease-fire.
Before the launch of the Israeli military operation against Rafah on May 6, it was home and shelter to over 1.5 million displaced Palestinians who fled their areas across the Gaza Strip due to the Israeli onslaught that started on Oct. 7, 2023.
On Tuesday, the Israeli army began expanding its incursion into Rafah amid heavy shelling and bombing, forcing thousands to flee western Rafah towards Khan Younis and areas in the central Gaza Strip.
Israel's current expansion of its incursion into Rafah makes the Israeli army close to fully in control of the border area between the Gaza Strip and Egypt, known as the Philadelphi Corridor, a demilitarised buffer zone running along the Gaza-Egypt border.
The Israeli army has so far seized control of almost two-thirds of the corridor area as it advances through heavy bombardment and shelling.
Israel continued its brutal offensive on Gaza despite a United Nations Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire.
At least 36,050 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, the vast majority being women and children, and over 81,000 others injured since October.
More than seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.
Israel stands accused of “genocide” at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered Tel Aviv to ensure its forces do not commit acts of genocide and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.
--BERNAMA
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