EU 'must be clear' with Israel over its obligation to halt operations in Rafah: Commissioner

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) -The EU commissioner for crisis management on Friday urged the bloc to "be clear" with Israel regarding its obligation to halt military operations in Rafah.

"My message at today’s (Foreign Affairs Council) FAC was clear: The humanitarian situation in Gaza is appalling. Humanitarian access to and inside Gaza continues to dramatically deteriorate," Janez Lenarcic said on X.

Lanercic stressed that killings of civilians "continue in most horrific ways" in Rafah, a place they were urged to flee to.

"EU must be clear with Israel that it is obliged to halt military operations in Rafah and open the Rafah crossing for humanitarian aid immediately, in line with the latest (International Court of Justice) ICJ's orders," he said.

At least 35 people were killed and dozens injured in a camp for displaced people and houses in Rafah on Sunday, said medical sources and officials.

The attack occurred near the logistics base of the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in Tal al-Sultan, said the Gaza Media Office.

Israel has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians in the Gaza Strip since a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7 last year.

The military campaign has turned much of the enclave of 2.3 million people into ruins, leaving most civilians homeless and at risk of famine.

The attack came despite a ruling by the ICJ that ordered Israel to halt its offensive in Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.