Politico: The inhumane reality in Rafah as Washington and Israel fight – 2024-05-11 04:02:00

For the support groups working on Rafathe debate over Israel’s military operation in southern Gaza is more like semiotics.

His army Israel insists it has launched only a “limited” operation on the edge of a densely populated city – not the full-scale invasion that the Biden administration warns that it would constitute a “red line” that could damage the relationship between the two allies.

But the city of 1.4 million people, filled with war refugees from northern Gaza, is already on a path of slow destruction, said Scott Andersonits deputy director UNRWAthe main UN agency in Gaza, and one of the few staff still in Rafah.

Anderson told POLITICO that the incursion of Israeli troops into the southeastern part of the city is already causing chaos and preventing aid from reaching people who desperately need it. UNRWA’s fuel reserves have run out and its food rations will run out on Friday, he warned in a Zoom interview on Monday.

The Biden administration said a major invasion would be a red line — noting it could lead to more civilian deaths. But aid groups say they are already struggling to distribute much-needed aid to the more than 1.4 million people living there. And today’s fighting has killed dozens of people in the past 24 hours.

Anderson argues that however Israel has chosen to describe its current operation in Rafah it is indifferent to the reality on the ground. His interview illuminates what is at stake for Gazans in the coming days and weeks if Israel goes ahead with a major ground invasion of Rafah.

Can you explain exactly what has happened in Rafah since the Israel Defense Forces began their operation?

The Rafah crossing was closed at around 2pm on Sunday because there was mortar fire from Hamas towards the crossing. The next morning, the IDF called to say that evacuation orders would be issued for Eastern Rafah – about 100,000 people. There was fighting throughout today. After that, we thought there would be a ceasefire. This obviously did not turn out to be true.

What is the situation in the city today?

What we are seeing today is an increase in the number of people being displaced from Rafah, not only from the areas that have been ordered to evacuate, but throughout Rafah. The roads are quite blocked. UNRWA had seven shelters inside the evacuation zone, all of which were emptied. Each had 5,000-7,000 people. We saw a greater presence of IDF (Israeli army) on the ground. There were strikes today further west in the town of Rafah itself, well outside the evacuation zone.

Who left Rafa?

Outside my window, there is a large area of ​​tents, with plastic makeshift structures. Yesterday I saw a bunch of people packing up and leaving, and today I saw a bunch of other people coming and setting up their tents. I think they’re moving from the East Shelf to the West Shelf, and I think they’re just trying to stay ahead of what they see as a business.

Displaced people often take all their belongings with them.

Where do Gazans go from Rafah? It seems that nowhere is safe.

Some try to go to Al-Mawasi [μια μικρή λωρίδα γης πάνω στο νερό στη νοτιοδυτική Γάζα]. It’s a miserable place. It’s like trying to build a city on a beach. There is no infrastructure, no sewage, no water. None of these things exist, and there are already 450,000 people in that general area. Is filled.

The crossings have been closed for several days. How did this affect the distribution of aid?

First and foremost: fuel transfers. Everything we do starts with fuel. The generators for the hospital for the sewage, the pumps for the production and distribution of water, the solid waste management, the food aid, the cross-border business – everything works. As of today, we have no fuel at all. We’re basically out of fuel. We kept enough to meet the minimum security standards we have to meet for the UN to continue to stay here. But we have reached this level. Some hospitals will start shutting down their generators in three days if we run out of fuel.

As for food, we’ll start to run out of things on Friday.

I don’t think there are pockets of famine in the south, but there are certainly pockets of hunger. And even if there is no famine, there could be famine-like conditions. For 300,000 people, it probably takes at least 30 services a day every day to sustain the population. In April, that would be 900 trucks. We got 185.

Are Israeli officials telling you about plans to reopen the crossings?

We got a call from Israel last night and they said they want to reopen the crossing [Κερέμ Σαλόμ]. I said, “That’s great, but we need to do an assessment first, getting unexploded ordnance experts and security and logistics people to look at the state of things and whether or not it’s favorable to restart the operation.” The transshipment area – it’s all looted, destroyed. There is virtually nothing left. And on top of that, there’s a battalion of tanks stationed in that area right now. So we can make it work, but we’ll have to coordinate through, basically, an active business.

At Rafa Pass, there is no one there. The passenger terminal that exists there and in the South appears to be in excellent condition, but there is no one there. Because it was all the people of a de facto authority running it, and they’ve all been displaced.

How long do you think it will take for Rafa’s borders to open at this point?

Thirty-six hours.

What about the battles in Rafa? Are they still going?

Even an hour ago I was hearing things. I haven’t heard in an hour, but they were quite active today. The other part of all this is that where there is an IDF concentration – it becomes a target. So every crossing today was hit by something. There is a stronger IDF presence now. There are two brigades, one is specialized in the tunnels and the other was the perpetrators of the incident [World Central Kitchen]. These are the two brigades now operating in South Rafah as well.

Two dozen have been killed in the past 24 hours, including seven children.

What is the general vibe in the city now where you are?

Disappointing is the best word. Once they thought there was a ceasefire, they reached what could be the start of something in Rafah. So people are scared, anxious, desperate, depressed. Choose your negative adjective.

We will stay and deliver. We’re not going anywhere. We are not evacuating, we are not moving. We’re not leaving. We will be here. As long as there is a need.

Source: Politico – Israel’s Rafah operation is fueling tensions with Washington. Here’s the reality on the ground.

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