Israel has continued its military assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah despite a draft resolution by the UN Security Council demanding an immediate end to the carnage. Fresh claims of airstrikes across the city surfaced on Wednesday morning, after earlier reports that Israeli tanks had broken through to the city’s core.

Rafah locals have spoken of a terrible situation. Local resident Abdel Khatib clarified that the reason people are stuck inside their houses is because Israeli drones are a menace since they shoot at anyone who moves. According to Palestinian news outlet Shehab, the airstrikes targeted a number of locations, including the region around the Badr camp and the Zourob roundabout in the western portion of the city.

The citizens are even more isolated because the city’s internet and phone services have been totally shut off. The Israeli force is moving forward into Rafah’s western region and has assumed control of the Philadelphi Corridor.

Reporting from Deir el-Balah, Hani Mahmoud of Al Jazeera said that Israel is driving Palestinians out of Gaza, worsening the humanitarian situation. More than half of Gaza’s 2.3 million inhabitants fled to Rafah, which had been declared a safe zone when Israel first began attacking the region’s north and center. As the attack carries on, around a million Palestinians have left Rafah in search of protection from the worsening fighting.

Global Condemnation Ignored: Israel’s Rafah Offensive Rages On

International condemnation of Israel’s actions has been met with warnings from allies not to launch the attack because of the increasing risk of civilian casualties and the deteriorating humanitarian situation. Mahmoud stated that because bombings are happening in Khan Younis, Rafah, and other areas of the Gaza Strip, those who were told to evacuate to the al-Mawasi evacuation zone are once more looking for safety elsewhere.

Most of Rafah’s medical facilities are no longer operational due to the attack. The shelling has rendered the Kuwaiti Hospital utterly inoperable, and all but one of the city’s field hospitals are closed.

Israel has been asked by US President Joe Biden to refrain from conducting a significant military action in Rafah; but, his government is adamant that Israel has not yet violated any red lines. John Kirby, a spokesperson for the National Security Council, said, “We have not seen them smash into Rafah.”

At least 21 people were killed in an Israeli strike on a camp for displaced people west of Rafah on Tuesday, according to a civil defense officer in Gaza. The Israeli army, however, refuted these accusations, asserting that it did not strike the Al-Mawasi designated humanitarian area.

The world has been incensed by this strike as well as another that occurred over the weekend and claimed 45 lives. In retaliation, Algeria demanded an immediate ceasefire and a stop to Israel’s offensive in Rafah, calling for an emergency meeting of the UN Security Council on Tuesday night. A recent International Court of Justice (ICJ) decision directing Israel to stop its military operations in the city was also cited in this draft resolution.

The purpose of the draft resolution, according to Algeria’s UN envoy Amar Bendjama, is to “stop the killing in Rafah.” Algeria is a member of the council for the 2024–2025 term. The Security Council was scheduled to reconvene on Wednesday, and diplomats hinted that a vote on the resolution would take place in a few days. The chances of the proposal, however, are doubtful because the US has already blocked three attempts to approve a resolution requesting a truce in Gaza.

Israel keeps up its operations in Rafah in spite of increasing international outrage and the terrible effects on civilians, highlighting the intricate and unstable nature of the Gaza conflict.