Heightened Israeli Attacks in Gaza Push Palestinians to Evacuate and Seek Refuge

The Israeli military has intensified its airstrikes and artillery fire in southern Gaza, causing Palestinians to evacuate the overcrowded city of Rafah in fear of a potential ground invasion. This wave of attacks has forced people, who have already been displaced multiple times throughout the four-month conflict, to seek refuge in Deir el-Balah and the Nuseirat refugee camp in central Gaza. Rafah, which was previously regarded as a "safe zone," served as the last sanctuary for those fleeing Israel's attacks across the rest of the enclave. Approximately 1.4 million Palestinians sought safety in tents and makeshift shelters there. The United Nations aid chief, Martin Griffiths, cautioned that if Israel proceeds with its planned military operation in Rafah, Palestinians may be forced into Egypt. He described the situation as a potential "Egyptian nightmare" with the possibility of the border crossing closing and resulting in further spillover. Griffiths argued that the idea of people in Gaza being able to evacuate to a safe place is merely an illusion. He urged friends of Israel and those concerned about its security to provide wise counsel during this critical moment. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu restated his objective to eradicate Hamas through any means necessary, including a military operation in Rafah. Netanyahu stated that after allowing the civilian population to leave the battle zones, a powerful action would be taken in Rafah. The head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Mirjana Spoljaric, expressed concern about the absence of a clear evacuation plan, particularly for the sick and elderly. She warned that the suffering experienced on both sides and the carnage witnessed since October 7 will reach an unimaginable level if operations in Rafah intensify as announced. Additionally, Israeli forces are conducting military operations in central and northern Gaza, making any mass movement towards the north extremely perilous. On Thursday, the Israeli army conducted a "precise and limited" attack on Nasser Hospital, the main medical facility in Khan Younis, southern Gaza. The military claimed to have credible information that Hamas fighters were hiding in the hospital and holding captives there. Hamas denied these allegations, labelling them as lies. Israeli troops stormed the hospital, ordering occupants to evacuate, and engaged in heavy tank and machinegun fire. Al Jazeera correspondent Hani Mahmoud reported from Rafah that Israeli forces had demolished the southern fence of the hospital and were rounding up doctors and nurses, preventing them from treating the wounded. Israel claimed to have opened a secure corridor for displaced individuals to leave the hospital on Wednesday but allowed doctors and patients to remain. Doctors Without Borders (Medecins Sans Frontieres, or MSF) criticized Israel's actions, stating that those ordered to evacuate were faced with the impossible choice of staying and becoming potential targets or leaving into a landscape of bombings akin to an apocalypse. Mohamad Elmasry, a professor at the Doha Institute for Graduate Studies, argued that Israel's siege of the hospital and its plans to move into Rafah are interconnected, indicating Israel's aim to make life unbearable for Palestinians. According to the Ministry of Health in Gaza, at least 28,663 people have been killed since the start of the war, with at least 68,395 wounded. In the past 24 hours alone, 87 Palestinians were killed and 104 wounded.