Despite ICJ’s Ruling To Halt Military Assaults, Israeli Airstrike Kills 35 in Rafah

At least 35 people have been killed after an Israeli airstrike hit a camp for displaced Palestinian civilians in the Southern Gaza city of Rafah on Sunday.

The Rafah strike comes days after the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel to halt its military assault on the city.

Following the ICJ’s ruling on Friday, Israel’s Finance Minister, Bezalel Smotrich, maintained that “Israel will not agree to that.”

Israel’s strike came hours after Hamas launched several rockets into Tel Aviv city, for the first time in 9 months, most of which were intercepted by the Iron Dome system.

Footage from the scene of Israel’s reprisal attack on civilians in Rafah has since emerged, revealing widespread civilian carnage and destruction, including charred corpses of Palestinian refugees who were burned alive inside their tents.

The Israeli military meanwhile, claims that its air force struck a Hamas compound and the attack was carried out with “precise ammunition and based on precise intelligence.”

Israel has repeatedly said a ground operation in Rafah, where it believes Hamas’s leadership and its fourth battalions are using Israeli hostages as human shields, is necessary to achieve “total victory” over the group.

Meanwhile, more than half of the Palestinian 2.3 million population who have sought shelter in Rafah are now displaced with little to no humanitarian aid.

About The Author

Mayowa Durosinmi

author

M. Durosinmi is a West Africa Weekly investigative reporter covering Politics, Human Rights, Health, and Security in West Africa and the Sahel Region

See author's posts