[ad_1]
(Reuters) – Egypt is preparing an area on the Gaza border where Palestinians could be accommodated in the event of an Israeli attack in Rafah, which could lead to an exodus across the border, four sources said, in what they described as a contingency by Cairo. The steps are as described.
Egypt, which has denied any such preparations, has repeatedly raised concerns over the possibility that Israel’s devastating Gaza offensive could displace Palestinians into the Sinai – a move Cairo says would be completely unacceptable. Warnings are being echoed from Arab states like Jordan.
The United States has repeatedly stated that it would oppose any displacement of Palestinians from Gaza.
One of the sources said Egypt is optimistic that any such scenario can be avoided through talks to enforce a ceasefire, but is setting up the zone on the border as a temporary and precautionary measure.
war in israel and gaza
Egypt has begun preparing a desert area with some infrastructure that could be used to shelter Palestinians, three security sources said, insisting it was a contingent move.
The sources Reuters spoke to for this story declined to be named because of the sensitivity of the matter.
Israel has said it will launch an offensive to capture Hamas’s “last bastion” in Rafah, where more than 1 million Palestinians have sought refuge from its devastating Gaza offensive.
Israel has said that its forces plan to evacuate civilians from Rafah to other parts of the Gaza Strip.
But U.N. aid chief Martin Griffiths said Thursday it was an “illusion” to think people in Gaza could flee to safety and worried about the possibility of Palestinians spilling into Egypt if Israel launched a military operation in Rafah. I warned.
He called this scenario “a kind of Egyptian nightmare”.
Egypt has framed its opposition to the displacement of Palestinians from Gaza as part of broader Arab rejection of any repeat of the “Nakba”, or “catastrophe”, when some 700,000 Palestinians fled, or the wars surrounding the creation of Israel. I was forced from my homes. 1948.
The first source said construction of the camp began three or four days ago and that it would provide temporary shelter in any scenario of people crossing the border “until a solution is reached.”
Asked about the accounts by sources, the head of Egypt’s State Information Service said: “It has no basis in truth. Our Palestinian brothers have said and Egypt has said that there is no preparation for this possibility. “
The Sinai Foundation for Human Rights, an activist organization, published photos on Monday that it said showed trucks and cranes carrying out construction work in the area and concrete barriers.
Citing an unnamed source, the Sinai Foundation said that the purpose of the construction work was to create a safe zone in the event of a mass exodus of Palestinians.
Reuters was able to confirm the location of part of the video as Rafa by the position of buildings, trees and fences matching satellite imagery of the area.
Reuters was not able to confirm the location of the entire video or the date it was filmed.
Israel’s relations are under pressure
According to the United Nations Agency for Palestinian Refugees, approximately 1.5 million Palestinians are currently in Rafah, more than half the population of the Gaza Strip.
Israel says it needs to expand its offensive into Rafah to wipe out Hamas, the group behind the October 7 attack that killed 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 250 others, according to Israeli figures. Was done.
The Israeli offensive on Gaza has already killed more than 28,000 people, according to health officials in Hamas-run Gaza, with the fate of those seeking refuge in Rafah becoming a subject of international concern, including among Israel’s Western allies.
US President Joe Biden has told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Israel should not move forward with the Rafah operation without a plan to ensure the safety of those taking refuge there.
A US State Department spokesperson said, “The President has made clear that we do not support the forced displacement of Palestinians from Gaza. The United States is not funding camps in Egypt for displaced Palestinians.”
Netanyahu’s office has ordered the army to prepare a plan to evacuate Rafah. But no plan has come forward yet.
In an interview with ABC News, Netanyahu said they could move to areas north of Rafah cleared by the army.
Israel’s Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Avi Dichter said on Wednesday that the evacuation was “a military issue” and that the Israeli military knew how to do it.
In comments on Israel’s Army Radio, Dichter said there was “enough land west of Rafah”, and mentioned Al Mawasi – an area on the coast for which the Israeli military said civilians should flee early in the offensive.
The Gaza war has increased pressure on relations between Egypt and Israel, which signed a peace agreement in 1979.
Arab League secretary general and former Egyptian foreign minister Ahmed Aboul Gheit said earlier this week that Israeli actions jeopardized the continuity of agreements with Egypt and Jordan – a reference to peace treaties with both Arab states.
Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said on 12 February that Egypt had upheld the agreement for 40 years and would continue to do so as long as both parties remain committed to it.
(Reporting by Reuters journalists; Editing by Tom Perry, Edmund Blair and Neil Fullick)
Copyright 2024 Thomson Reuters,
[ad_2]
Source link