In a series of retaliatory actions in the Middle East, Israel carried out fresh air attacks on Friday in the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Following the attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu ordered the military to prepare a n evacuation plan for the civilians residing in Rafah, indicating a possibility of invasion of the Southern Gaza City. In the wake of the planned strikes, followed by the expected invasion, more than 1 million Palestinians have already begun to evacuate themselves.
The fresh airstrikes came after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s statement on Wednesday in which he made it clear that the Israeli military is getting ready to move towards the southern Gaza city of Rafah.
In a visible shift of stance regarding Israel, the United States had previously made its disapproval clear on Israel’s plan to move forward to Rafah. President Joe Biden also criticized Israel’s actions in Gaza, particularly after the attack on October 7th, describing them as ‘over the top’, further asking Israel to stop with the strikes. Providing further clarification regarding the airstrikes on Thursday, the State Department stated that it did not support any ground offensive in Rafah. Moreover, they also warned against any operation in the city, which could endanger lives.
The recent event was unprecedented as just last week the militant group, Hamas, drafted three proposals to Israel by Qatari and Egyptian mediators to hold a 45-day ceasefire within the region along with prisoners swap and dead bodies exchange. However, responding to the same, PM Netanyahu, held a press conference, describing Hamas’ proposals as ‘bizarre and delusional’. On the contrary, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken mentioned that there’s still a possibility of negotiating an agreement in order to calm the situation.
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