UN rapporteur urges Western nations to intervene after Israel's Rafah evacuation order

By Beyza Binnur Donmez

GENEVA (AA) - The UN special rapporteur on Palestine urged the Western nations to intervene after Israel's Rafah relocation order that affects hundreds of thousands of already displaced Palestinians.

"Israeli army intensifies bombardment of Rafah, months after declaring it 'safe zone'. Last night it reportedly killed dozens of Palestinians," Francesca Albanese said on X.

"This morning it issued another mass evacuation (ergo: expulsion) order affecting hundreds of thousands of already displaced Palestinians," Albanese added.

She stressed that it is no coincidence that the evacuation order came amid the definite ban of Al Jazeera from Israel, describing the media group as the "only media company reporting on those massacres."

Israeli authorities raided Al Jazeera’s office on Sunday, and seized its broadcasting equipment, shortly after a government decision to shut down the network’s operations in the country.

Qatar-based Al-Jazeera network has been one of the few media outlets broadcasting from the Gaza Strip, despite the ongoing Israeli strikes, which have killed more than 100 journalists and media workers.

"Is there any red line left that Israel cannot cross?" she said. "The West must intervene and impose an immediate arms embargo, sanctions and divestments, unless it wants to risk being complicit in Israel's crimes in Gaza."

In a step widely seen as the prelude to an offensive, the Israeli army on Monday issued urgent evacuation orders to Palestinian residents and displaced individuals in eastern Rafah, urging them to immediately relocate.

According to Israeli Army Radio, the decision to evacuate residents from eastern Rafah was taken late Sunday, adding that around 100,000 civilians believed to be present in the area are set to be evacuated.

Since Oct. 7, the Israeli onslaught has killed nearly 34,700 Palestinians, mostly women and children, besides causing a humanitarian catastrophe.

Nearly seven months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel also stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided.