Pressure mounts on Israel to abandon plan for Rafah ground offensive

Summary:

• At least 67 Palestinians were killed in Israeli airstrikes on the southern Gaza city of Rafah, according to Palestinian hospital officials.
• Israel announced the rescue of two hostages after a raid in Rafah on Monday.
• Senior officials from the US, Egypt, Israel and Qatar are expected to meet Tuesday in Cairo to work on a three-phase framework that would see the release of hostages and achieve an extended pause.
• US President Joe Biden and Jordan’s King Abdullah kept up pressure for a Gaza Strip ceasefire as senior mediators were to resume work on Tuesday on an Israel-Hamas truce agreement.
• UN human rights chief Volker Türk warned an assault on Rafah would be “terrifying“. He warned that an “extremely high number of civilians, again mostly children and women, will likely be killed and injured”.
• The US said it did not support a full-scale military operation in Rafah without a plan to protect civilians.
• An Israeli air strike on Monday seriously wounded a local Hezbollah official in his car in Lebanon’s south.
• The health ministry in Hamas-run Gaza says at least 28,340 people have been killed and 67,984 wounded in Israeli strikes on the enclave since October 7, the vast majority women and children. Israeli officials say about 1,140 people were killed in the Hamas-led October 7 attacks in southern Israel. Militant fighters took some 250 hostages during the attack and 132 are still in Gaza, according to Israeli figures.

• France evacuated 42 people from Gaza on Monday, including French nationals and staff of the French cultural institute, the foreign ministry said.
• The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court voiced deep concern Monday about a possible Israeli ground offensive into Rafah in Gaza, warning anyone breaching international law would be held accountable.
• Hamas’ armed wing said Monday that three of eight Israeli hostages who were seriously injured following Israeli air strikes had died from their wounds.
• European Union foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters on Monday that the international community may have to think about providing arms to Israel.

• Philippe Lazzarini, head of the UN agency for Palestinians UNRWA, has said he has “no intention to resign” following allegations that some staff members participated in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7.

(FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP, Reuters)