Egyptian official denies refugee camp being built in Sinai
North Sinai Governor Mohamed Shousha denies Egypt is preparing “an isolated area in Sinai” to receive Palestinian refugees as Israeli readies a ground invasion of Rafah. The construction work highlighted in satellite imagery is being done to assess the value of houses destroyed in recent years to “properly compensate” owners, Shousha said.
But the Sinai Foundation for Human Rights said two contractors told it that construction firms were tasked with building a gated area “surrounded by 7-metre-high [23ft-high] walls”. The site lies on the “rubble” of Egyptian homes “demolished” during the government’s war against fighters in northern Sinai over the past decade, the foundation said.
Unnamed sources in Sinai told the Agence France-Presse news agency the area is being prepared in case of a breach of the Gaza border, which Egypt has fortified with additional walls and buffer areas since Israel’s war on Gaza began. “The area will be readied with tents” and humanitarian assistance would be delivered inside, said one source who spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Israel’s ‘veto’ of Palestinian state needs to be revoked
Gershon Baskin, a former Israeli negotiator with years of experience dealing with Hamas, says Benjamin Netanyahu often gives the message in Hebrew to the Israeli public that as long as he’s prime minister, there won’t be an independent Palestinian state next to Israel.
“I would put the emphasis on ‘as long as I’m prime minister’ – which won’t be too long,” Baskin told Al Jazeera. “Netanyahu will be facing his day of reckoning with the Israeli people who are very angry with him. He’s lost more than 50 percent of his base. His period as leader is coming to an end.”
As the Gaza conflict spreads through the Middle East, now’s the time for the international community to take over efforts to create the state of Palestine, he said.
“I think it’s very important the veto that Israel’s held for over 30 years on Palestinian statehood needs to be taken from Israel. This conflict has spilled beyond the borders of Palestine, it concerns regional and global security, and there are presidential electoral concerns to take into account,” added Baskin, highlighting US President Biden’s re-election campaign.
“Let’s face it, 139 countries have already recognised Palestine. But the rich countries have not, and it’s time they do it.”
‘Enough is enough’: Time for world leaders to impose Palestinian statehood
Israel launches wars every few years and destroys Gaza, and then the international community must fund its rehabilitation, he said. “It puts risk over the whole world as all kinds of other tensions rise because of the conflict in Gaza. The international community should say enough leaving it to Israel. It is time for the international community to impose a solution. Otherwise, it will go on like this forever."
The World Health Organization (WHO) is trying to get access to Nasser Hospital as Israeli troops continue to raid the facility, where hundreds of civilians are trapped. “There are still critically injured and sick patients that are inside the hospital,” WHO spokesperson Tarik Jasarevic said. “There is an urgent need to deliver fuel to ensure the continuation of the provision of life-saving services. … We are trying to get access because people who are still in Nasser Medical Complex need assistance.”
Israel’s military has called the raid on the hospital “precise and limited” and said it has detained dozens of “terrorists”.
Israeli attacks on central, south Gaza kill Palestinians
“There’s been a very notable surge in military strikes in the last hour, specifically on the central part alongside the southern parts of Gaza,” reports Al Jazeera’s Tareq Abu Azzoum from Rafah, in the south Gaza Strip.
Abu Azzoum said that two Palestinians have been killed in an Israeli strike on Dier el-Balah, after Israeli artillery destroyed a residential building. In addition, two more people were killed in the southern city of Khan Younis when “an Israeli military drone targeted a group of residents,” he said. Central Gaza, Abu Azzoum added, has recently witnessed waves of evacuations from the south, specifically from Rafah, as Israel prepares to carry out its military ground operation in the city.
Israeli war cabinet minister says fighting could continue during Ramadan
Israeli war cabinet minister and former Defense Minister Benny Gantz said Israel “won’t stop” until all hostages in Gaza are returned, even if that means continuing hostilities during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan. “I would like to convey a message to all citizens of Israel and to the families of the hostages: We don't stop — until they are returned,” Gantz said in a video on Friday. “There will not be a ceasefire even for one day until our hostages are returned.”
Gantz said the fighting would continue, regardless of the time of the year. “Even in the approaching month of Ramadan, the fire can continue," he said. "Either our hostages will be returned, or we will expand the fighting to Rafah.” Gantz added Israel is preparing for a ground offensive into Rafah and will act “in dialogue” with its partners, including Egypt, and “direct the population to protected areas.”
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said that the operation in Rafah must be completed by the start of Ramadan on March 10, an Israeli official told CNN on Saturday.
