Increasingly isolated Netanyahu is set on an assault of Gaza’s Rafah – whatever the cost

Countries are lining up to tell the Israeli prime minister of the dire humanitarian consequences of going into the border city where nearly 1.5 million Palestinians are sheltering, writes Bel Trew. And the political price will be heavy too

Palestinians arrive in Rafah after being evacuated from Nasser hospital in Khan Younis (Reuters)

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu is facing increasing global isolation over his vow to launch a ground assault on Rafah, the last refuge for Palestinians in Gaza, with leaders around the world warning that it would be “catastrophic”.

In just 24 hours, the prime ministers of Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Ireland and Spain – as well as French president Emmanuel Macron and German foreign minister Annalena Baerbock – have issued separate statements warning that a military operation into the border town would ignite a humanitarian disaster.

South Africa has also once again approached the International Court of Justice to consider action on Israel’s planned Rafah assault.

The Irish and Spanish prime ministers also announced they had taken the first steps toward possible economic penalties against Israel, urging the European Commission to review whether the country is complying with human rights obligations under the EU-Israel trade agreement.

Irish prime minster Leo Varadkar has warned Israel is “blinded by rage” and is not even listening to the advice of its close ally the United States, which has also expressed its concerns about Rafah.

But ever-defiant, Netanyahu has vowed his army will press until a “complete victory”.

“This includes a powerful action in Rafah as well, after we allow the civilian population to leave the battle zones,” the Israeli premier said on his Telegram account late on Wednesday.

Netanyahu, centre, in the northern Gaza Strip late last year (AP)

Rafah, which borders Egypt, is sheltering an estimated 1.5 million people, the majority of whom are sleeping in makeshift shelters after fleeing Israel’s bombardment of the enclave. Displaced families living in tents told The Independent they had “nowhere to go” as swathes of the 42km strip have been destroyed.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) said an Israeli offensive on such a densely populated area would lead to “a slaughter” and create a humanitarian disaster “beyond imagination”. Rights groups have warned an evacuation of people on this scale would be impossible, particularly for the elderly and the injured.

This is all part of why Netanyahu is facing growing pressure from world leaders to reconsider the planned offensive. Palestinian health officials say that Israel’s bombardment has already killed more than 28,000 people since October. At least 80 per cent of the population have fled their homes and a quarter are starving. The situation is only expected to get worse.

But Israel has vowed to continue until Hamas, the militant group which runs Gaza, has been “eliminated”. This is in retaliation for the militants’ assault on Southern Israel on 7 October where they killed around 1,200 people and took more than 250 captives.

Smoke from the ground operation in Khan Younis, seen from a camp sheltering displaced Palestinians in Rafah (Reuters)

More than 100 of the captives were freed during a weeklong truce last year in exchange for 240 Palestinian prisoners. About 130 captives remain in Gaza, a fourth of whom are believed to be dead, igniting concerns among the families of the hostages that a widened military offensive also seriously endangers their loved ones’ lives.

There also was growing alarm about the fate of medics and patients in Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis, which the WHO has said was the “backbone” of healthcare services in the war-ravaged south of the country. Doctor Khaled Alserr, a surgeon inside the hospital, said the situation was “getting worse every hour… every minute” and that dozens of patients were still in the facility, unable to stand.

The administration of US president Joe Biden, meanwhile, is facing criticism for continuing to supply arms to Israel as allegations pile up that American-made weapons have been used in strikes that have killed or injured civilians. Israel denies targeting civilians. On Tuesday, the State Department said that it is reviewing reports that Israel has harmed civilians in its war in Gaza under a set of guidelines aimed at ensuring countries receiving US arms conduct military operations in line with international humanitarian law.

Netanyahu, whose belligerent attitude towards talks about a ceasefire has frustrated the US, is quickly running out of options. He appears set on an assault on Rafah, but that will bring consequences to many of the Western nations who had backed Israel's right to defend itself in the wake of the Hamas attack. The Israeli prime minister clearly feels backed into a corner, with his poll ratings having plummeted in recent months, but he cannot continue to lash out.