EU foreign policy chief reiterates call on Israel to not launch military attack on Rafah

By Nur Asena Erturk

EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell on Saturday reiterated his call on Israel to not launch a military attack on Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah.

"The EU asks Israel not to take military action in Rafah that would worsen an already catastrophic humanitarian situation," he wrote on X, sharing the link to one of his previous statements.

He stressed that all civilians must be protected in line with international humanitarian law, and called for Israel to respect the International Court of Justice's order issued last month.

"We call again on Hamas for the immediate & unconditional release of all hostages," Borrell also wrote.

Some 1.5 million Palestinians previously displaced by Israel's offensive on Gaza are holed up in Rafah, seeking refuge from hostilities that have laid waste to wide swathes of Palestinian territory.

Israel's reported plans for an offensive on the city have sounded international alarm bells, with many countries urging restraint or an outright cancellation.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip since an Oct. 7 cross-border attack by Hamas, which Tel Aviv says killed nearly 1,200 people.

The Israeli war on Gaza has pushed 85% of the territory's population into internal displacement amid acute shortages of food, clean water, and medicine, while 60% of the enclave's infrastructure has been damaged or destroyed, according to the UN.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.