Hamas approves cease-fire proposal, evacuation of civilians in Rafah underway

Seconds after accepting a cease-fire proposal in Gaza, a Hamas official said the “ball is now in Israel’s court,” with a choice “between accepting the cease-fire agreement — or blocking it.”

Earlier the Prime Minister of Israel promised Launch a ground attack on Rafah Whatever the outcome of the indirect talks led by Qatar, the US and Egypt.

A spokesman for the UN secretary-general warned that the “massive evacuation” of a section of Rafah’s population ordered by Israel was “impossible” to be carried out in a “safe” manner, assuring countries that the US was not participating. “Any involuntary discharge”.

“Today’s evacuation orders for East Rafah will increase the suffering of civilians. They have been ordered to Al-Mawasi, which is already overcrowded and lacks security and basic humanitarian services. A mass evacuation of this scale cannot be done safely,” Stephane Dujarric told reporters.

Hamas announced that it had accepted a ceasefire proposal put forward by Egyptian and Qatari mediators for the Gaza Strip.

However, Benjamin Netanyahu has vowed to launch a ground offensive in Rafah regardless of the outcome of indirect talks led by Qatar, the US and Egypt aimed at imposing a cease-fire on the release of hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinian prisoners.

Egypt has warned of the dangers of an Israeli military operation in Rafah, a city on the edge of the besieged Gaza Strip that has become a haven for more than a million Palestinians.

Egypt has called for “maximum restraint and avoidance of further escalation” to negotiate a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas in the Gaza Strip, in which Cairo is one of three mediators, along with Qatar. and America.

During a meeting between the US president and the Israeli prime minister, Joe Biden reiterated his opposition to Israel’s promised military offensive in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, which has become a haven for many displaced Palestinians.

Israel’s prime minister has assured the US president that humanitarian aid can still be delivered through a key crossing point in Gaza during the military operation in Rafah, the White House announced.

It is Kerem Shalom, Israel’s main cross-point for humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip, and was targeted by rockets fired by Hamas yesterday.

UN Human Rights The High Commissioner said in a statement that the order to evacuate Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip, was inhumane.

“It is inhumane. It goes against the basic principles of international humanitarian law and international human rights law,” said Volker Turk.

The Israeli army today called for residents to evacuate east of the town of Rafah, which has become a haven for many displaced people, in preparation for a military ground offensive.

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said he was “deeply concerned” by the prospect of an Israeli attack in Rafah and called on “all parties, especially Hamas” to accept a deal to release the Israeli hostages.

“I have always spoken about the possibility of a military incursion into Rafah, given the number of civilians taking refuge there and the importance of the crossing for humanitarian aid in the Gaza Strip,” he told British media. “I made these arguments to Prime Minister (Israeli Benjamin) Netanyahu on several occasions”.

The Palestinian Red Cross said “thousands of people” are fleeing East Rafah after Israeli airstrikes hit the area, which the Israeli army ordered to leave hours earlier.

“The number of people moving from the east to the west of Rafah is significant, especially as the bombings have intensified and thousands of people are fleeing their homes,” Palestinian Red spokesman Ossama al-Kahlood told the Crescent.

“With more than a million people gathered in Rafah, the consequences of the military offensive will be devastating,” says Doctors Without Borders on X.

“The occupancy rate of hospital beds is more than 200%, I have never seen such a catastrophic situation in my life,” says doctor Mohammad Abu Muqaiseb.

Hamas warned Israel on Monday that its preparations for a ground attack on Rafah ignore the fate of hostages in the Gaza Strip and threaten hundreds of thousands of civilians in the besieged Palestinian territory.

Hamas said in a statement that Israel was preparing to launch its attack without regard to the ongoing humanitarian disaster in the Gaza Strip or the fate of its captives, who have been held there since their October 7 abductions in southern Israel. The Israeli army called for the evacuation of residents east of the town of Rafah, which has become a haven for many displaced people on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip, in preparation for a ground offensive.

Joe Biden will meet with Benjamin Netanyahu this Monday, the White House said, as Israel prepares a major offensive in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.

“We have made clear to the Israeli government our views on a major ground invasion in Rafah and the president will speak to the prime minister today,” a spokesman for the National Security Council told AFP.

“We continue to believe that a deal to release the hostages is the best way to protect the lives of the hostages and avoid an invasion of Rafah, where more than a million people have taken refuge,” he continued.

EU diplomatic chief Joseph Borrell on Monday ruled “unacceptable” an evacuation order issued by Israel to residents east of the town of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

The evacuation order “signifies the worst: more war and famine. It is unacceptable. Israel must abandon the ground offensive,” he insisted in a message to X in Rafah. Prevent such a situation,” he added.

The 600,000 children huddled together in Rafah are at risk of “new imminent disaster”, UNICEF warned, calling “not to displace them by force”, while Israel’s army began an operation to evacuate the city as it prepares for a major offensive.

“Military operations risk significant civilian casualties and total destruction of basic services and infrastructure,” UNICEF warned in a press release.

Osama al-Kahlood, a member of the Rafah-based Red Crescent emergency operations unit, confirmed Israeli shelling of eastern Rafah neighborhoods.

“It is clear that they are targeting houses, but we have not been informed of the presence of victims in the targeted areas,” he told AFP.

The Israeli army intensified its bombardment of two neighborhoods in Rafah, ordering residents to evacuate early this morning, Gaza’s Palestinian Civil Defense told AFP.

Palestinian Civil Defense spokesman Ahmed Redwan explained that Israeli air and artillery strikes “continued since last night and intensified since this morning”, adding that two of the targeted neighborhoods – al-Shuqa and al-Salam – were targeted. The Israeli army asked residents to evacuate.

The spokesman said the bombardment intensified following Israel’s notification to residents of some neighborhoods in East Rafah due to an upcoming military operation. Questioned by AFP, the Israeli military did not immediately comment.

The Israeli army, which is preparing a major offensive against Rafah, began a “limited-scale operation” on May 6 aimed at “temporarily” evacuating some 100,000 people living in Gaza east of the city, forcing them to move to “humanitarian zones”.

Read more about this eviction order here.

Hello everyone, welcome to this live broadcast dedicated to the war in the Gaza Strip. The Israeli military, preparing to launch an offensive against Hamas in Rafah, today ordered more than 100,000 residents to evacuate the city.