The Egyptian Foreign Minister denied reports that his country is preparing for an influx of refugees as Palestinians in Rafah face an expected Israeli ground attack.
More than a million people took refuge in the south in Gaza The city of Rafah on the border with Egyptare preparing for an operation before Israeli The army, and there was no longer anywhere to flee inside the besieged area.
Satellite images taken on Thursday showed construction work progressing along the Egypt-Gaza border, sparking suggestions that Egypt is preparing to receive Palestinian civilians.
Satellite images show land being cleared in an area close to the Egyptian border with Gaza. Photo: Reuters/Maxar Technologies
Photo: Reuters/Maxar Technologies
The Sinai Foundation for Human Rights published footage purported to be of the site. In a post on the X website, it quoted Egyptian officials as saying that tents were being prepared and the area could serve as a camp to accommodate up to 100,000 refugees.
But Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry told Sky News. Yalda Hakim There was “absolutely no preparation” for the influx of Palestinians and the construction seen in the photos was normal border maintenance.
Shukri said: “No, we are not preparing anything on our side of the border. All that is happening is normal maintenance of our borders and border fortifications. It is in no way related to providing any camps or shelter on our side of the border.” the border.
“We are providing a significant amount of humanitarian aid and tents to shelter Palestinians who do not have any shelter, and in areas that we hope will be spared from military activity.
“[There is] There was absolutely no preparation for the flow of any civilians from Gaza into Egyptian territory.”
The foreign minister added that Egypt has regularly maintained the border “for years and years” and any suggestions that there is more action are “exaggerated”.
Palestinians in Rafah take shelter on the border with Egypt. Photo: Reuters
He added that Egypt will continue to provide humanitarian aid trucks to the Palestinians on the other side of the border.
In response to a question about whether the idea of an influx of Palestinian refugees was considered a “red line” for him, Shukri said: “Absolutely. I am ready to strike this at the highest level. This is not an acceptable circumstance.”
He added: “We will not accept the liquidation of the Palestinian cause by removing the Palestinians from their lands, and creating new conditions for displacement.”
British Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron said the UK was “deeply concerned” about the situation in Rafah and He called on Israel to “stop and think seriously.” Before taking further action, while US President Joe Biden said there was a need for a “credible plan” to protect civilians before the attack.
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Israel must have a “credible plan” before the Rafah operation
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Israeli officials said the army was working on a detailed plan to evacuate civilians from Rafah before that, but they had not yet shared any details.
In an interview broadcast by the American network ABC last week, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reiterated that Israeli forces would carry out an attack on Rafah, but insisted that they were preparing a “detailed plan” regarding where civilians could go there.
He said: “We will do that. We will control the remaining Hamas terrorist brigades in Rafah,” adding: “We will do so while providing safe passage for the civilian population.”
Israel Katz, the Israeli Foreign Minister, said on Friday that his country “will coordinate with Egypt” regarding Palestinian refugees.
The imminent military attack on Rafah comes on the heels of operations in northern Gaza, Gaza City, central Gaza, and Khan Yunis.
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Israel says its special forces raided the largest operating hospital in Gaza
Israeli forces Nasser Hospital raid In Khan Yunis on Thursday, it said it arrested 100 suspects in the building, killed militants near the hospital and found weapons inside.
The Gaza Ministry of Health said about 10,000 people were seeking shelter in the hospital earlier this week, but many had left either in anticipation of the Israeli raid or because of Israeli orders to evacuate.
They also said that at least 83 people had been killed in air strikes across the Gaza Strip since Friday, including one person in Rafah on Saturday.
