An Israeli tank brigade this morning has taken total control of the Gaza Strip side of the Rafah border crossing with Egypt.
Who Controls Rafah Crossing?
The Israeli 401st Brigade entered the Rafah crossing and took ‘operational control’ of the crucial crossing for both aid and those able to flee into Egypt, officials said, adding this morning that they had ‘eliminated approximately 20 terrorists‘.
What Will Happen Now?
The move is described as a ‘death sentence for Gazans’ by the territory’s crossing authority.
Footage circulating on social media showed an IDF tank trundling over the border, with another clip later appearing to show Israeli flags flying at the crossing point.
Why Did Hamas Reject Ceasefire?
The invasion came just hours after Israel ‘soundly’ rejected a new ceasefire deal hashed out by Egyptian and Qatari negotiators that Hamas said it had accepted.
The announcement from Hamas sparked premature celebrations in Rafah yesterday as war-weary Palestinians took to the streets rejoicing news of a ceasefire deal.
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Sam Rose, director of planning at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), also said Israeli’s seizure of the Rafah crossing would be ‘devastating’ for Palestinians.
‘(The crossing) has been the lifeblood for the small amounts of goods that have been coming into Gaza since October’.
‘There’s no ability for desalination plants to operate and provide safe water. There’s no electricity – it cuts off everything,’ Rose told Al Jazeera.
