Israel-Palestine Escalation
Israel was hit by an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip on October 7, with Hamas movement's troops infiltrating border areas. On October 8, the Israeli government announced that it had invoked Article 40 of the Basic Law, which means the country was officially in a state of war.

Refugee Evacuation From Rafah to Alleged Safe Zone Is 'Illusion', Says UN

© AFP 2023 Mohammed AbedRescue workers survey the scene following Israeli bombardments over Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 12, 2024
Rescue workers survey the scene following Israeli bombardments over Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on February 12, 2024 - Sputnik Africa, 1920, 15.02.2024
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GENEVA (Sputnik) - At least 28,300 Palestinian civilians, mostly children, have died in Israeli attacks since the start of Israel's military operation in Gaza following the October 7 Hamas attack, according to Gaza health officials. Last month, a UN court ruled that Israel must take immediate action to prevent acts of genocide in the enclave.
The evacuation of refugees from the Rafah city to the supposed safe zone is an illusion, as there is no safe place in the Gaza Strip, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Martin Griffiths has said.
"There is not anywhere safe for people to go in Gaza, it is an illusion to think there is some wonderful part of Gaza where you can go and be safe from the war because the displacement continues ... as the war spreads," Griffiths said, commenting on the evacuation of people from Rafah.
Critical infrastructure in the Gaza Strip, including medical facilities, is being systematically destroyed, which makes it impossible for international organizations to provide medical and humanitarian assistance to civilians affected by the war, Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) Secretary General Christopher Lockyer said.
African Union Chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, meets with Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Wednesday, Nov. 1, 2023, at the State Department in Washington. - Sputnik Africa, 1920, 15.02.2024
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A total of 827 attacks on medical facilities in the enclave have been registered since October 7, 2023, Altaf Musani, the World Health Organization Director of the Health Emergencies Interventions said. The number includes attacks on hospitals, patients, personnel and ambulances, he added.
On October 7, 2023, the Gaza Strip-controlling Hamas movement launched a large-scale rocket attack against Israel and breached the border, attacking both civilian neighborhoods and military bases. As a result, over 1,200 people in Israel were killed and some 240 others were abducted. Israel launched retaliatory strikes, ordered a complete blockade of Gaza, and started a ground incursion into the Palestinian enclave with the declared goal of eliminating Hamas fighters and rescuing the hostages. At least 28,663 people have been killed so far in the Gaza Strip, local authorities said.
On November 24, Qatar mediated a deal between Israel and Hamas on a temporary truce and the exchange of some of the prisoners and hostages, as well as the delivery of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The ceasefire was extended several times and expired on December 1. More than 100 hostages are still believed to be held by Hamas in Gaza.
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