UN warns: Israel attack on Rafah on 'immediate horizon'

The United Nations on Tuesday warned that an Israeli assault on Rafah in the Gaza Strip was "on the immediate horizon" and that "incremental" progress by Israel on aid access to the enclave could not be used to prepare for or justify an operation.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres appealed for states with influence over Israel "to do everything in their power" to prevent an Israeli assault on Rafah in southern Gaza, where more than 1.2 million displaced Gaza Palestinians are sheltering.

Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu vowed on Tuesday to go ahead with a long-promised assault, whatever the response by Hamas to latest proposals for a halt to fighting in the nearly seven-month-long war and a return of Israeli hostages.

"The world has been appealing to the Israeli authorities for weeks to spare Rafah, but a ground operation there is on the immediate horizon," said UN aid chief Martin Griffiths in a statement. "The simplest truth is that a ground operation in Rafah will be nothing short of a tragedy beyond words."

Guterres told reporters that there had been "incremental progress" toward averting "an entirely preventable, human-made famine" in northern Gaza, but much more was urgently needed.

"These improvements in bringing more aid into Gaza cannot be used to prepare for or justify a full-blown military assault on Rafah," Griffiths said.

Guterres specifically called on Israel to follow through on its promise to open two crossings to the north.

"A major obstacle to distributing aid across Gaza is the lack of security for humanitarians and the people we serve. Humanitarian convoys, facilities and personnel, and the people in need must not be targets," Guterres told reporters.

When asked what leverage the US could use over its ally Israel to boost aid access and avert a Rafah assault, Guterres said: "It is very important to put all possible pressure in order to avoid what would be an absolutely devastating tragedy."

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has said he will discuss with Netanyahu on Wednesday measures that Israel still needs to take to increase the flow of aid into Gaza.

"I strongly encourage the government of Israel and the Hamas leadership to reach now an agreement," Guterres said. "Without that, I fear the war, with all its consequences both in Gaza and across the region, will worsen exponentially."

Reuters