Hundreds of thousands more people face displacement as military instructions suggest likely attack on centre of city
The Israeli military has told residents of central Rafah to evacuate, signalling a major expansion of its military operations in the city and threatening the displacement of hundreds of thousands more people.
The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) seized the Rafah border crossing with Egypt last week in what it said was a “precise, targeted operation” after ordering the evacuation of eastern neighbourhoods. More than 150,000 people have already fled the southern city in Gaza.
Many have gone to an “expanded humanitarian zone”, designated by the IDF on the coast and to the north-west where conditions are “horrific”, according to aid workers.
The new instructions to residents suggest a coming offensive will take the IDF into the centre of Rafah and on to a likely advance through the entire city.
