Tanks reach centre of Rafah as Israeli bombing increases

Israeli tanks have pushed into the centre of Rafah for the first time, as Israeli forces bombard the Gaza border city where hundreds of thousands of people are sheltering.

- BEL TREW

The push comes as the UK called for a "swift and transparent" full investigation into an airstrike and subsequent blaze that killed at least 45 people in a tent camp in the city on Sunday.

The strike on the Tel al-Sultan neighbourhood, which the Palestinian Red Crescent said is partially located in a designated humanitarian zone, has led to an international outcry. More than half of the dead are said to be women, children and the elderly.

Palestinian officials claimed yesterday that at least another 21 people were killed in tank shelling that hit another tent camp in al-Mawasi in western Rafah. However, the Israeli military denied this. “Contrary to the reports from the last few hours, the IDF did not strike in the Humanitarian Area in al-Mawasi,” a statement said.

In an earlier statement, the Israeli army said that an initial investigation by their own forces into the strike on Sunday found that the blaze near the tent camp was caused by a secondary explosion. Chief military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said it was still unclear what set off the blaze, but that the military fired two 17kg munitions targeting two senior Hamas militants.

He said the munitions would have been too small to ignite a fire on their own and the military is looking into the possibility that weapons were stored in the area. The fire could have ignited fuel, cooking gas canisters or other materials in the densely populated camp, where people were sheltering under little more than tarpaulin and cloth.