“Today, there is no longer a functional hospital in Rafah,” humanitarians worry

Israeli tanks entered different sectors of this city, which has become the new focus of the war between Israel and Hamas. Enough to make the NGOs that Franceinfo was able to contact on site fear the worst.

Despite international pressure, Israel pushes its offensive into the heart of Rafah. Israeli tanks continued on Wednesday, May 29, their advance begun the day before in the heart of this town in the south of the Gaza Strip, where many displaced people found refuge, despite the ruling of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) which ordered the end of military operations. Witnesses today report progress towards the west of the city.

What was initially just a “limited operation“, according to the Israeli government, is transforming into a massive advance. According to several witnesses, the IDF offensive intensified at the beginning of the week and thus progressed very significantly towards the sea. “Areas that the Israeli army is asking to evacuate are expanding more and more and the fighting is moving closer and closer from east to west. The geographical area extends westward“, describes Philippe Bonnet, director of emergencies at Solidarités Internationale, who entered the Gaza Strip last week.

This advance of Israeli armor was preceded by bombings and artillery fire. The danger is now felt throughout the city of Rafah. The last two hospitals in the west have been evacuated, specifies Guillemette Thomas, medical coordinator of Médecins sans frontières from Jerusalem: “For 48 hours, a stabilization center and then the last hospital in Rafah, the Emirati Hospital, which today are completely out of service. In practice, today, there is no longer a functional hospital in Rafah. Only field hospitals in the humanitarian zone are able to accommodate the wounded.“

This advance caused a panic: around a million people have already fled the city. There is a “communicating vessel” effect with the town of Deir el-Balah, further north, where Philipe Bonnet’s team is based: “We do everything we can. We still have a little bit of stock, but it’s not enough…”

“We are going to find ourselves in the situation in which we were in Rafah, just a few weeks ago. A situation which is extremely difficult to live in, with little water, little food…”

Philippe Bonnet, director of emergencies at Solidarités Internationale

at franceinfo

This massive, quiet advance also complicates the entry of humanitarian aid. NGOs enter slowly, twice a week from the Kerem Shalom post. “We have to cross a front line. We can clearly hear the sounds of fighting. So there are convoys which are organized with United Nations armored cars, which are in contact with the Israeli army, which gives us green lines to be able to pass when the fighting and the bombings stop.“According to the Israelis, four brigades were mobilized for this new operation.