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Israel confirms the presence of its forces in the center of Rafah

2024-05-31 19:34:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

Israel confirms the presence of its forces in the center of Rafah

The Israeli army confirmed on Friday that its forces are operating in the central parts of Rafah, in an effort to expand the military offensive in the southern city of the Gaza Strip.

Israel launched its ground offensive on the city on May 6, forcing an estimated 1 million Palestinians to flee the city to seek refuge elsewhere. The offensive has also prevented UN aid agencies from carrying out their missions in the area.

But the president of the United States, Joe Biden, has said that Israel has not crossed the "red lines", after warning it against the complete occupation of this city.

The Israeli military's announcement on Friday hinted that its troops were operating in most parts of Rafah. In the first weeks of the offensive, Israeli forces were concentrated in the suburbs and eastern areas of Rafah, near the border with Egypt.

Israeli troops occupied the Rafah border crossing with Egypt on the first day of the offensive and later took control of the "Philadelphia Corridor", a road that stretches along the entire border between Gaza and Egypt in the Palestinian part.

In a statement on Friday, the army said its troops in central Rafah had found rocket launchers and tunnels and destroyed an arms cache of Hamas - the group designated as a terrorist group by the US and the European Union.

She did not say where exactly the army was conducting operations in Rafah, but based on past reports and witnesses, the operations were conducted in the Shaboura refugee camp and other parts near the city center.

Israel has said the occupation of Rafah is vital in its efforts to root out Hamas, after the group carried out a surprise attack on Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and kidnapping around 250 others.

Israel's war in Gaza has since killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, half of them children and women, according to Palestinian health officials./ Rel





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