Warnings about Israel's plans for Rafah are coming from all quarters

International unrest over Israel's plans for a ground offensive in Rafah, southern Gaza, has increased in recent days, as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vows to press ahead with plans to invade the city near the Egyptian border.

According to the United Nations, more than half of the more than two million inhabitants of the Gaza Strip are sheltering in Rafah, an area of ​​approximately 40 square kilometers. Many of them were repeatedly pushed south by Israeli military orders to move to so-called safe zones. They are now stuck on the southern edge of Gaza, where they largely live improvised tents with little food or clean waterbelow aerial bombardment And awaiting the terrifying prospect of soldiers coming at them again.

Mr Netanyahu has done that the Israeli army ordered to draw up plans to evacuate civilians from Rafah before the offensive, although human rights groups say it is unlikely that an evacuation of such magnitude could be carried out in accordance with international law. They also say that because Rafah is the main portal for aid to Gaza, any military operation there would have disastrous consequences for the entire enclave.

Warnings against the offensive have come from almost every part of the world, including from Israel's most powerful allies.

Here are some of the most notable.

• The United States: A ground invasion of Rafah should not take place “without a credible and actionable plan” to ensure the safety of displaced civilians, President Biden told Mr Netanyahu in a phone call on Sunday: according to the White House.

  The US is one of the Israeli military's main backers and its most steadfast diplomatic ally. On Tuesday, John F. Kirby, Mr. Biden's national security communications adviser, declined to answer questions about what the United States would do if Israel moved to Rafah without such a plan, saying: “Let's see what they come up with.”

• South Africa: The government has requested the International Court of Justice in The Hague, the highest court of the UN, to do so consider further emergency measures against Israel in light of the threatened offensive, saying it would violate the court's order in January for Israel to take proactive steps to prevent a genocide.

• Britain: British Foreign Secretary David Cameron said his country was “very concerned about what is happening in Rafah” and wanted Israel “stop and think very seriously before taking further actionthere. “It's impossible to see how you can fight a war between these people,” he added. “They have nowhere to go.”

• Other major European countries and the European Union: France is strongly opposed to an offensive in Rafah, President Emmanuel Macron's office said Mr Netanyahu said in a telephone conversation. German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock has said the offensive is a “humanitarian catastrophe”, and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide warned that this “making humanitarian aid virtually impossible.”

  The EU's top diplomat, Josep Borrell Fontelles, denounced the idea that Israel could successfully evacuate all civilians from Rafah before a ground offensive, saying this week: 'Are they going to evacuate? Where? To the moon?”

• Major Middle Eastern countries: Egypt, which borders Gaza and is hosting the current ceasefire negotiations in Cairo, has categorically refused to allow large numbers of Palestinians into the country from Rafah, fearing that their displacement could be permanent. Qatar, another key mediator, as well as Jordan and Saudi Arabia have also warned Israel against invading Rafah.

• Australia, Canada, New Zealand: The Prime Ministers of the three nations have one joint statement He called for an “immediate humanitarian ceasefire” in light of Israel's plans for Rafah, adding that international consensus against the offensive was growing. “Israel must listen to its friends and the international community,” the statement said. “The protection of civilians is of paramount importance and a requirement under international humanitarian law.”

Warnings have also come from top UN officials and aid groups:

• The United Nations: The UN Assistant Chief, Martin Griffiths, said Palestinians in Rafah were “staring death in the face” and that military operations there “could lead to a massacre.” He added: “The government of Israel cannot continue to ignore these calls. History will not be kind.”

  The UN human rights chief, Volker Turksaid that “apart from the pain and suffering of the bombs and bullets,” an invasion of Rafah could put an end to the “meager” humanitarian aid that has entered the enclave, with “huge consequences for all of Gaza, including the hundreds of thousands in Gaza”. high risk of famine and starvation in the north.”

  In response to a question about whether the UN would assist with evacuation efforts, Stephane Dujarricthe spokesperson for the UN Secretary General, said they “will not be a party to forced displacement.”

• The International Criminal Court: Karim Khan, the chief prosecutor at the court in The Hague, said that he “very concerned” about a possible Israeli offensive in Rafah and emphasized that he had seen “no discernible change in Israel's behavior” during his office's investigation into possible war crimes. “Those who do not comply with the law will not be allowed to complain later when my office takes action on its mandate,” he said.

• International Committee of the Red Cross: 'Countless lives are at stake' the ICRC said, adding that international humanitarian law “protects all civilians from the consequences of hostilities, including those who may not be able to leave Rafah.”

• Doctors Without Borders: Israel's ground offensive in Rafahmust not continue” said Meinie Nicolai, the charity's leader, calling on the US and other governments that support Israel “to take concrete action to achieve a full and lasting ceasefire. Political rhetoric is not enough.”

• Save the children: “Much of the international community has so far failed the tests of their commitment to protect children,” the organization said, warning that 610,000 Palestinian children are in Rafah. “This is the toughest test of all.”