Israel-Gaza war: US declares it will not support impromptu Rafah offensive

The US told Israel that attacking Gaza’s southern city of Rafah without good planning would be very bad.

About 15 million Palestinians are living in a city next to Egypt in very difficult living conditions.

The White House said it would not support big operations without thinking about the refugees living there.

Days after Israel’s leader said that the military is getting ready to work in Rafah, these comments were made.

Many people in Rafah had to leave their homes because of fighting in other parts of Gaza, so they are now living in tents.

Israel attacked Rafah from the air on Thursday morning and Israeli tanks also started shooting.

Garda al-Kourd, a mother of two, has been forced to move six times because of the war. She thinks Israel might attack, but she is hoping for a ceasefire before it happens.

“If they come to Rafah, it will be the end for us. It feels like we are waiting to die. ” “We don’t have anywhere else to go,” she said to the BBC. She was staying with 20 other people at a relative’s house in Rafah.

Emad, who is 55 years old and has six children, is staying in Rafah after running away from his home. He told the Reuters news agency that he is most scared of a ground attack because he has nowhere else to go.

“We are standing with our backs to the fence on the border and looking towards the Mediterranean,” he said. “Where do you want to go. ”

A lot of northern and central Gaza has been destroyed by constant bombing from Israel since the war started on 7 October.

On Thursday evening, US President Joe Biden said that Israel’s actions in Gaza were too much. He did not mention Rafah.

Before, a spokesperson for the US National Security Council named John Kirby said that the Israeli military has a responsibility to protect innocent civilians when they are carrying out operations in Gaza or anywhere else.

“He said that starting a war right now would be really bad for those people, and it’s not something we would agree with,” He also said that there is no evidence to show that Israel is going to start a big war in Rafah soon. ”

Deputy State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel agreed with Mr. Kirby, saying that the US would not support doing something like this without careful and believable planning.

The BBC asked where refugees in Rafah could go if there was an operation. Patel said these were important questions that the Israelis should answer.

In Tel Aviv, Israel, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that any military action by Israel must focus on protecting civilians. “and that’s especially true for Rafah”

The US doesn’t usually talk about what Israel will do next in Gaza, but this time they gave a clear warning.

Every year, the United States gives $3. 8 billion in military aid to Israel, making it the country that receives the most military aid in the world.

Israeli officials say about 1,300 people were killed by Hamas attacks in southern Israel on October 7th.

Israel started a war and more than 27,800 Palestinians have been killed and at least 67,000 injured in response. This information is from the Hamas-run health ministry.

“The UN leader said people are living in crowded shelters without clean water, electricity, or enough food. ”

“We strongly spoke out against the terrible actions of Hamas. ” We also strongly disapprove of breaking the rules of war in Gaza.

On Tuesday, Israel’s leader, Benjamin Netanyahu, said he told soldiers to get ready to go to Rafah and that Israel would soon have complete success over Hamas in just a few months.