‘Israel’s friends concerned’ about military operations in Rafah: Australia

By Riyaz ul Khaliq

ISTANBUL (AA) - Australia has warned Tel Aviv that its friends were "concerned" about Israel’s military operations in Rafah city of besieged Palestinian enclave of Gaza.

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said: “153 countries, including Australia, have already called for an immediate humanitarian cease-fire.”

“Now many of Israel’s friends are expressing deep concerns about reports of an Israeli military operation in Rafah.

“This would have devastating consequences for civilians,” said Wong, referring to more than a million civilians in and around the city.

Calling on Tel Aviv to take “special care” of civilians, Wong said Palestinians were displaced to Rafah city because of Israeli military operations in northern Gaza.

Not taking “special care,” Wong warned, “will have devastating consequences."

Israel has warned of a ground offensive in Rafah, home to more than 1 million people seeking refuge from the war, to defeat what Israel says are the remaining "Hamas battalions."

The planned offensive has triggered concerns of a humanitarian catastrophe in Rafah.

Palestinians have sought refuge in Rafah as Israel pounded the rest of the enclave since a cross-border incursion by the Palestinian group Hamas on Oct. 7. The ensuing Israeli bombardment has killed more than 28,000 people and caused mass destruction and shortages of necessities.

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 stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which said in an interim ruling that South Africa's claims in a case filed in December were plausible.

In its January ruling, the court ordered provisional measures for the Israeli government to desist from genocidal acts, and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.