More calls for ceasefire and stay out of Rafah is all there is, no sanctions, no actions, just empty statements
Israeli assault on Rafah would create humanitarian catastrophe, German foreign minister says
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock condemned Israel's plans to launch a ground offensive in Rafah, saying it would create a "humanitarian catastrophe."
Speaking during a news conference after she met with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Baerbock drew attention to the plight of displaced Palestinians sheltering in Rafah. "More than half of Gaza's population is currently seeking shelter in Rafah. 1.3 million people are waiting there in a very small space. They don't really have anywhere else to go right now," Baerbock said. "These people cannot simply vanish into thin air. If the Israeli army were to launch an offensive on Rafah under these conditions, it would be a humanitarian catastrophe in the making," she said.
This comes as Netanyahu promised a "powerful action" in Rafah after the civilian population is evacuated, according to a statement posted on X. During her talks, Baerbock said she pushed for "more border crossings be opened quickly" so more humanitarian aid and medical supplies can reach people in Gaza.
The foreign minister also laid out Germany's support for a ceasefire, saying it would create "a window of opportunity to free the hostages and to get more humanitarian aid in."
Yet continues to send more munitions to kill people
Rafah assault would be fulfillment of Israeli promise to ‘flatten the strip’
While Israel has said that it will seek the evacuation of the hundreds of thousands of displaced Palestinians trapped in Rafah before launching a military operation there, Middle East specialist Hafsa Halawa says Israel’s destructive campaign has rendered much of Gaza unlivable.
“It [Rafah] sits right at the border with Egypt. It’s seen by the Egyptians as a major breach of their national security, and ultimately it brings the question of where will these 1.3 to 1.4 million people go?” Halawa told Al Jazeera’s Inside Story programme. “The rest of Gaza is effectively uninhabitable, there are no services, we’ve heard the talk of famine for months now, and now we’re at a stage where this is really the Israeli government enacting what they promised on the first week after the attacks of October 7, which is to flatten the Strip.”
At least Biden won't deport Palestinians to Gaza (isn't it standard practice not to deport people to war zones??)
Biden shields Palestinians in US from deportation
The US president has signed a decree to protect Palestinians in the country from deportation for 18 months because of the deteriorating conditions in Gaza and the rest of the Palestinian territories. “While I remain focused on improving the humanitarian situation, many civilians remain in danger; therefore, I am directing the deferral of removal of certain Palestinians who are present in the United States,” Biden says in the order.
Palestinians convicted of a felony, deemed a “danger to public safety” or whose presence is determined to have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences” will not be protected by the decree.
Biden, a staunch supporter of Israel’s war on Gaza, also ordered the Department of Homeland Security to issue work permits for Palestinians who fall under the order.
Oh my country is concerned, not concerned enough to stop arms trade with Israel or re-instate UNWRA funding
Canada, Australia, New Zealand say they are ‘gravely concerned’ about Rafah operation
The prime ministers of Canada, Australia and New Zealand have issued a joint statement saying a “humanitarian ceasefire is urgently needed” in Gaza and that they are “gravely concerned” about looming Israeli military operations in Rafah. “A military operation into Rafah would be catastrophic. About 1.5 million Palestinians are taking refuge in the area, including many of our citizens and their families,” the statement reads.
“With the humanitarian situation in Gaza already dire, the impacts on Palestinian civilians from an expanded military operation would be devastating. We urge the Israeli government not to go down this path.”
The statement – cosigned by Prime Ministers Anthony Albanese, Justin Trudeau and Christopher Luxon – also said that Israel “must listen to its friends and it must listen to the international community” and that Palestinian civilians can’t be made to “pay the price of defeating Hamas”.
Joint statement with @JustinTrudeau and @chrisluxonmp. pic.twitter.com/Egqy6ZyrtZ
— Anthony Albanese (@AlboMP) February 15, 2024
Concerned for being complicit to the coming massacre
‘Save us from this genocide’ – Children in Rafah protest for their lives
