Gaza aid is 'choked off' as Israel seizes Rafah crossing

‘Fire of hell’ rains down on civilians scrambling to evacuate

- BEL TREW NEDAL HAMDOUNA

Gaza has entered the “darkest days of a seven-month nightmare” UN officials have said, warning that vital aid is being “choked off” after Israeli forces and tanks seized control of the main aid crossing in Rafah.

Civilians in the border city, which is sheltering more than 1.4 million mostly displaced families, likened the bombardment to “the fire of hell” as “missiles fell like rain” while they scrambled to evacuate following orders from the Israeli military.

Despite pleas from its closest allies to hold off, Israel moved its tanks into east Rafah and captured the border crossing early yesterday morning, in what it called a “limited” operation meant to kill fighters and dismantle infrastructure used by Hamas militants. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu called it an “important step” toward dismantling Hamas.

The move by Israel came hours after Hamas announced it had accepted an Egyptian-Qatari mediated ceasefire and hostage proposal. Mr Netanyahu said that the proposal fell far short of Israel’s “essential” demands. Negotiations for a truce in Cairo are ongoing – with Israel saying it had sent officials to the Egyptian capital – but on a knife edge.

In Gaza, the UN warned that a full-scale assault on the area and continued closure of Rafah and Kerem Shalom crossings would have a “catastrophic” impact on hundreds of thousands of people mostly living in the tents there.