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Egypt warned on Tuesday that Israel’s operation in Gaza’s Rafah city threatens ceasefire efforts, shortly after the Israeli military took control of the vital Rafah border crossing between the Palestinian enclave and Egypt, according to the foreign ministry.
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The Israeli military seized control of the Rafah border crossing between the Gaza Strip and Egypt on Tuesday and its tanks pushed into the southern Gazan town of Rafah after a night of airstrikes on the Palestinian enclave.
The Israeli offensive took place as mediators struggled to secure a ceasefire agreement between Israel and its Hamas foes and as the conflict entered its 8th month.
The Palestinian militant group said late on Monday it had agreed to a ceasefire proposal but Israel said the terms did not meet its demands.
Amid international concern over the plight of civilians crammed into Rafah, Israeli tanks and planes attacked several areas and houses there overnight.
More than one million people have sought refuge in Rafah, living in tented camps and makeshift shelters. Many are trying to leave, heeding Israeli orders for them to evacuate, but with large areas of the coastal enclave already laid to waste, they say they have nowhere safe to go to.
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The Israeli military said a limited operation in Rafah was meant to kill fighters and dismantle infrastructure used by Hamas, which governs the besieged Palestinian territory.
Read more:
UN says its access to Gaza’s Rafah crossing ‘denied’ by Israel
Israeli operation in Rafah disrupts medical services: Aid groups
Saudi Arabia warns against Rafah invasion, denounces Israeli ‘war machine’
