Rafah Residents: Israel Increasing Efforts to Capture City

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Facts

  • Residents in Rafah said that Israeli forces were ramping up their efforts to capture the city, moving into its western and northern neighborhoods, with many reporting that the military's operations had increased over the past two days.1
  • Israeli forces had already moved into the east, south, and center of Rafah after starting an assault on the city in early May. Over 1M displaced Palestinians took refuge in the city before the offensive but have now largely fled to other areas of the strip.2
  • A UN report released this week found that Israeli air strikes in Gaza may have repeatedly breached the laws of war, citing six strikes that killed at least 218 people. Israel said the findings were 'factually, legally, and methodologically flawed.'3
  • The humanitarian situation in Gaza has also worsened as displaced Palestinians brace for the summer heat. The UN said that the war has destroyed 67% of the strip's water and sanitation system, which was already substandard.4
  • Though Israel has said that it is working to increase the flow of aid into Gaza, the UN has said that lawlessness and insecurity have been the main obstacle to effectively distributing aid throughout the strip. Groups of armed men have regularly attacked and looted aid convoys in recent weeks.5
  • Meanwhile, Qatari Foreign Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani said on Friday that cease-fire negotiations between Israel and Hamas had made progress 'to some extent,' calling on both parties to find compromises to close the remaining gaps.6

Sources: 1Reuters, 2Al Jazeera, 3BBC News (a), 4BBC News (b), 5Associated Press and 6Timesofisrael.

Narratives

  • Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by New York Times. Israel must be able to defend itself from terrorist attacks from Gaza or elsewhere, and the US is committed to preventing malicious actors from threatening Israel's legitimate concerns. However, the humanitarian situation in Gaza has gotten out of hand, and the Biden admin.'s red lines are clear. Netanyahu must be willing to work with the US and its allies to find a resolution to this conflict.
  • Pro-Israel narrative, as provided by Jerusalem Post. The battle for Rafah is the most important battle of this war. Israeli forces have focused on securing the Philadelphi corridor, which straddles the Egyptian border, as this region is crucial in preventing Hamas from rebuilding its clandestine supply lines into Gaza. Indeed, Israel must continue to push forward in Rafah, as it is the only way to defeat Hamas.
  • Pro-Palestine narrative, as provided by Middle East Eye. It should be clear after almost eight months of grinding brutality that Israel's true goal is to destroy Gaza and starve its people. The Biden admin., which has obscured its support for the Rafah offensive, has helped Israel destroy Gaza at every step of the way, even providing the bombs that burned dozens of women and children alive. Israel is committing daily massacres in Gaza, and the US is fully complicit.