UN: Almost 450,000 people fled Rafah in a week

Almost 450,000 people left the city of Rafah in Gaza in the space of one week as hordes of displaced people try to escape from heavy attacks in the south of the coastal strip, the UN said on Tuesday.

“Empty streets in Rafah as families continue to flee in search of safety,” the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) wrote on X.

“People face constant exhaustion, hunger and fear. Nowhere is safe. An immediate ceasefire is the only hope.”

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip following Palestinian resistance group Hamas’ cross-border attack on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people.

Nearly 35,100 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have since been killed, and over 78,800 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Seven months into the conflict, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice (ICJ). An interim ruling in January said it is “plausible” that Tel Aviv is committing genocide in Gaza, ordering it to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.