Israeli troops said fighting near Rafah crossing with Egypt
Reports indicate that Israeli troops and tanks are nearing the Gazan side of the Rafah crossing between Egypt and the Palestinian enclave after fighting along the so-called Philadelphi Corridor on the Egypt-Gaza border.
In footage from the crossing broadcast by Egypt’s al-Qahera TV, heavy gunfire and explosions can be heard as well as the drone of military aircraft. No people can be seen at the crossing.
Egyptian official says the operation appears to be limited in scope. He and Hamas’ Al-Aqsa TV say Israeli officials informed the Egyptians that the troops would withdraw after completing a targeted operation.
On Sunday, Hamas fighters near the Rafah crossing fired mortars into southern Israel, killing four Israeli soldiers.
A Palestinian security official and an Egyptian official confirm that Israeli tanks have entered the southern Gaza town of Rafah.
Elsewhere in Rafah, the Palestinian al-Quds news network claims five fatalities were brought to a local hospital after a home was bombed in the west of the city.
A live feed from a Rafah intersection provided by Reuters shows little activity beyond the movement of ambulances and journalists.
Jordanian king asks Biden to prevent Rafah ‘massacre’
Jordan says King Abdullah II asked President Joe Biden in talks Monday to intervene to stop a “new massacre” in Rafah, the southern Gaza city where Israel has threatened an assault.
“His Majesty warned that the Israeli attack on Rafah, where 1.4 million Palestinians are internally displaced as a result of the war on Gaza, threatens to lead to a new massacre,” a Jordanian statement says after the two leaders meet in Washington.
Abdullah also warned that an offensive on Rafah could lead to the expansion of the Gaza conflict to other parts of the Middle East, and called for international backing for UNRWA, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, the statement said.
Palestinian reports claim Israeli tanks, troops pushing into Kerem Shalom crossing
Palestinian news outlets say Israeli forces are pushing into the Kerem Shalom crossing, shelling the area from the air and with artillery fire.
Al-Aqsa TV reports that Israeli tanks are firing at the crossing from some 200 meters (650 feet) away, destroying the terminal which has served as one of the main conduits for aid into Gaza since November.
The crossing sits some 3 kilometers from the eastern edges of Rafah in the far south of Gaza.
Other reports claim that ground forces are moving into the crossing area and that air strikes are hitting eastern Rafah.
There is no comment from the Israeli military on the reported action.
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