Israel strikes Gaza as more Rafah evacuations ordered
- Israel’s army says troops fought against ‘armed terrorists’ and found ‘numerous underground tunnel shafts’ in the Rafah crossing
- Rafah residents prepare to flee again as UN warns Gaza risks ‘epic humanitarian disaster’ if outright invasion occurs
Israeli strikes on Saturday hit parts of Gaza including Rafah where Israel expanded an evacuation order and the United Nations warned of “epic” disaster if an outright invasion of the crowded city occurred.
Agence France-Presse journalists, doctors and witnesses reported strikes across the coastal territory, where the UN says humanitarian relief is blocked after Israeli troops defied international opposition and entered eastern Rafah this week, effectively shutting a key aid crossing and suspending traffic through another.
At least 21 people were killed during strikes in central Gaza and taken to Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in Deir al-Balah city, a hospital statement said.
Bodies covered in white lay on the ground in a courtyard of the facility. A man in a baseball cap leaned over one body bag, clasping a dust-covered hand that protruded.
The feet of another corpse poked from under a blanket bearing the picture of a large teddy bear.
In Rafah, witnesses reported intense air strikes near the crossing with Egypt, and smoke was seen rising over the city.
Other strikes occurred in north Gaza, witnesses said.