PARIS: France has said that it condemned the Israeli offensive on Rafah launched on Tuesday and termed the military operation as threatening to “cause a catastrophic situation for the civilians of Gaza”.
In a statement, the French Foreign Ministry said has called on Israel to end Rafah and reopened Rafah crossing.
#Israël #Territoirespalestiniens l La France déplore le lancement le 7 mai d’une opération militaire de l’armée israélienne à Rafah. Une telle opération menace de provoquer une situation catastrophique pour les populations civiles de Gaza.
Déclaration ➡️ https://t.co/x3tpYqHnaa pic.twitter.com/mhNkswCrzw
— France Diplomatie🇫🇷🇪🇺 (@francediplo) May 10, 2024
It stated that that civilian population in Gaza have “no safe area” and called on Israel to return to talks, which is said was “the only possible way to lead to the immediate release of captives and obtain a lasting truce”.
The statement added that Paris also called on Israel to reopen the Rafah border crossings between Egypt and Gaza, so that humanitarian help can enter the Palestinian territory, and condemned Israeli settler assaults on aid shipments destined for the Gaza Strip.
The statement further said that Israel should also put an end to “settler violence”.
As per Arab media reports, fierce fighting is taking place in eastern Rafah with Hamas fighters ambushing Israeli forces and tanks with improvised explosive devices, and rockets as Israeli troops push deeper into the city refuging more than 1.4 million Palestinian people.
According to Gaza Health Ministry more than 34,943 Palestinians have been killed mostly women and children in Gaza since October 7. It further stated that more than 78,572 people injured in Israeli strikes on Gaza.
