UN Says Israeli Attack On Rafah Could Be Massacre Of Civilians

Israeli military land operations in Gaza. (Source: Israel Defense Forces)

JAKARTA - The United Nations Humanitarian Office on Friday said Israeli attacks on the Rafah would endanger the lives of hundreds of thousands of Gazans and be a major blow to aid operations across the enclave, as the World Health Organization (WHO) announced an emergency plan for the attack.

"This could be a massacre of civilians and a tremendous blow to humanitarian operations across the region as the operation was mainly carried out in Rafah," UN Humanitarian Office (OCHA) spokesman Jens Laerke said at a news conference in Geneva.

Israel has repeatedly warned of an operation against Hamas in Gaza's southern city of Rafah, where about one million refugees have gathered, after fleeing Israeli bombings for months triggered by a deadly cross-border attack by Palestinian militants on October 7.

Israel said it would seek to ensure the evacuation of civilians safe from Rafah.

Laerke said aid operations in Rafah included medical clinics, warehouses containing humanitarian supplies, food distribution points and 50 centers for children suffering from acute malnutrition.

"OCHA will do everything possible to ensure aid operations continue, even in the event of an attack, and are studying how to do so," he added.

Meanwhile, a WHO official said at the same briefing that an emergency plan for Rafah had been prepared, including a new field hospital, but said it would not be enough to prevent a large increase in the number of dead victims.

"I really want to say that this emergency plan is just a relief," said Rik Peeperkorn, WHO representative for the Palestinian occupation area via video link.

"This will absolutely not prevent additional mortality and morbidity which is thought to have been caused by military operations," he said.

Other preparations include placing medical supplies in hospitals in the north if three hospitals in Rafah do not work, as has happened repeatedly in seven months of Israeli attacks and bombings.

WHO data shows that only a third of the 36 pre-war hospitals in the region are still partially operational. Israel accuses Hamas of using the hospital for military purposes and says its operations against the hospital are justified by the presence of fighters. Hamas and medical staff denied the allegations.

Peeperkorn added he was "very worried" that any attack would close the Rafah crossing between Gaza and Egypt which is currently being used to import medical supplies.

"We encourage and lobby so that, whatever happens, it remains open," he added.

Separately, the Ministry of Health in Gaza on Friday announced that the death toll of Palestinians since the Gaza conflict broke out last October had 34,622 people and 77,867 people were injured, quoted from WAFA.

Meanwhile, ambulances and rescue teams have yet to reach the many casualties and bodies trapped under the rubble or scattered on the streets of the war-torn enclave, as Israeli forces continue to block the movement of ambulances and civilian defense teams.