Australia, Canada, NZ urge Israel to avoid 'catastrophic' Rafah operation
Visit our website:
http://www.france24.com
Like us on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/FRANCE24.English
Follow us on Twitter:
https://twitter.com/France24_en
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:00 "There is simply nowhere else for civilians to go," said a rare joint statement published
00:05 by Australia, Canada and New Zealand's prime ministers on Thursday.
00:10 This as Israel prepares a ground offensive in the southern city of Rafah, Gaza, whose
00:14 population has increased five-fold as Palestinians from across the Strip have fled there in hopes
00:20 of finding safety.
00:21 "I wish to restate the Australian government's grave concerns about an impending major Israeli
00:28 ground offensive in Rafah.
00:31 This would bring further devastation to more than a million civilians seeking shelter in
00:35 Rafah, many there by Israel's direction.
00:39 Australia believes this would be unjustifiable."
00:42 Wednesday saw Ireland's Taoiseach Leo Varadkar and Spanish Premier Pedro Sanchez pen a letter
00:47 to Ursula von der Leyen for an urgent EU review of potential human rights violations committed
00:54 by the Israeli campaign in Gaza.
00:57 The letter states that the expanded Israeli military operation in Rafah possesses a grave
01:01 and imminent threat that the international community must confront urgently.
01:06 And on a visit to Jerusalem on Tuesday, German diplomacy chief Annalena Baerbock made an
01:11 emotive plea to the Israeli government, evoking Israeli evacuation orders that encouraged
01:17 civilians to seek refuge in Rafah and the plight of those who left their homes carrying
01:22 their children with nothing but the clothes on their back.
01:27 "If the Israeli army were to launch an offensive on Rafah under these conditions, it would
01:32 be a humanitarian catastrophe in the making."
01:36 This after talks with Prime Minister Netanyahu and President Lapid, who believe the senior
01:41 Hamas operatives behind the 7th of October attacks are hiding out in the Rafah area.
01:46 The Prime Minister maintained on Wednesday that Israel would fight until what he called
01:51 complete victory.