Major concerns about evacuation call in Rafah: ‘People are in total panic’ | War Israel and Hamas

The Israeli army has distributed flyers over Rafah with planes. It calls on Palestinian citizens to leave the east of the city. That is a reason for urgent consultations, because it may indicate a ground offensive, says aid organization Oxfam Novib.

“There is fear of a new total blackout, with Rafah being completely cut off from telephone and internet,” says an Oxfam Novib aid worker who is on site and wishes to remain anonymous for security reasons. “When Gaza City and Khan Younis were attacked, that’s what happened.”

“People are running around aimlessly. They are in total panic and don’t know where to go. They can hardly make calls anymore and since Sunday the internet has been extremely slow.”

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It is not clear when exactly the evacuations will start, says Bushra Khalidi, policy officer for the occupied Palestinian territories at Oxfam in Ramallah. “Many people cannot find a way to escape Rafah. There is hardly any gasoline and many have nothing but themselves.”

It is also not clear where the Palestinians should go. “The greatest fear is for the evacuation routes that Israel will designate. On previous escape routes, people were shot at, killed and sometimes captured,” says Khalidi. She says that nowhere in Gaza is actually safe.

The Israeli army’s appeal states that people can flee to, among other places, a refugee camp in Al Mawasi, an area on the coast north of Rafah. New tents have been placed there on the beach. “But there is certainly not enough space for more than 100,000 people,” both care providers say.

Al Mawasi is located a short distance from Rafah. “Because of the small area, nowhere is safe. Moreover, Al Mawasi has been the target of attacks before, so new tents offer no hope,” Khalidi thinks.

Several Oxfam Novib employees have to leave Rafah. Save the Children also informed NU.nl that it had received an evacuation call. “But we mainly employ Palestinians who cannot leave at the moment,” says a spokesperson. But assistance in the overcrowded city is declining again.

According to Oxfam, the border crossings at Rafah and Kerem Shalom have been closed since Sunday and it is unclear if and when they will reopen. Since then, trucks with relief supplies have stopped arriving.

UNWRA, the UN aid agency for Palestinian refugees, previously said it would not leave Rafah. “The consequences would be devastating for some 1.4 million people. UNRWA is not evacuating: the organization will remain in Rafah as long as possible and continue to provide life-saving assistance to people,” the organization writes on X.

Khalidi also says she does not know what aid organizations can still do. “We are dependent on politics. We want to help people, but for this help must be able to enter the area and that is now impossible.”

Egypt has raised its level of alert in the northern Sinai region due to the unrest in the Gaza Strip. According to Egypt, the call to evacuate makes it clear that the country will launch a “limited” military operation there.

According to Israel, Hamas fighters are hiding in Rafah and Israeli troops must enter the city to eliminate them. Israel’s allies, including the United States, oppose such an incursion.

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