Palestinians mourn relatives killed in an Israeli airstrike in a camp for displaced persons in the southern Gaza city of Rafah on Sunday, May 26. Gaza health officials said the attack killed 35 people.
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GAZARAFA – An airstrike in Rafah on Sunday killed 45 Palestinians and injured dozens more, the Gaza health ministry said. The statement said there were still victims under the rubble, most of whom were women and children.
The Israeli military said it targeted Hamas facilities and killed two senior Hamas militants. The attack caused a fire at a camp in the Tal Sultan neighborhood west of Rafah, where dozens of Palestinians were taking shelter. The area has been designated a safe zone by the Israeli military, which last week distributed leaflets in the area saying humanitarian aid would be provided there.
The attack came days after the United Nations International Court of Justice ordered Israeli forces to end operations in Rafah. The order is one of several interim measures added by South Africa to a broader case brought to the International Court of Justice in December against Israel over accusations of genocide. It also ordered Israel to open its border with Egypt, allow aid in, and allow a United Nations fact-finding mission in to investigate allegations of war crimes.
Abu Mohammed Abu el-Sebeh, 67, who had taken refuge in the camp, was investigating the damage following the attack.
“Yesterday around 6:30 p.m., I heard a loud bang. I heard an explosion, it sounded like an earthquake,” he told NPR. “I couldn’t get out, so I jumped out of the window and saw the injured child… a child without a head.”
Until this month, Rafah was the last refuge for Palestinians during the war, which left much of Gaza devastated. Nearly 1.3 million Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah, but the United Nations says more than 800,000 have fled since Israeli forces expanded their ground operations there. Rafah remains densely populated in areas that have not been under evacuation orders.
Dr. James Smith, an emergency physician working outside Rafah, said the injured were taken to a trauma stabilization center in Tal Sultan and then transferred to surrounding field hospitals for further treatment. Over the past few months, many hospitals in Rafah and neighboring cities have been ordered to be evacuated and closed by the Israeli military.
Palestinians view damage caused by Israeli airstrikes to a displaced persons camp near the southern Gaza city of Rafah, Sunday, May 26. Gaza officials said 35 Palestinians were killed in the attack.
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“people [were] Smith told NPR that they were literally being burned alive in their tent. “This is unlike anything I have seen in the more than six weeks since I returned to Gaza. This is truly one of the most horrific massacres in Rafah and the Gaza Strip in recent days.
Israel’s war in Gaza has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to local health officials. During the Hamas attack on October 7, approximately 1,200 Israelis were killed and more than 240 were taken hostage.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu faces growing domestic pressure to negotiate a ceasefire to bring the remaining hostages home. Israel has been rocked by weekly protests by the hostages’ families and others calling for Netanyahu’s resignation. He also faces pressure from hard-liners in the government who do not want a complete ceasefire.
Israeli media reported that officials said negotiations were expected to resume next week. David Bania of Israel’s Mossad, William J. Burns of the CIA and Qatari Prime Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahma Al-Thani in Paris this weekend There were some high-level discussions.
Negotiations in Qatar have been breaking down for months as the United States and Egypt have tried to bring Hamas and Israel closer to a deal.
NPR’s Kat Lonsdorf contributed to this report.
