Israeli Airstrike Hit Rafah As Ceasefire Deal Fall Short

Israeli airstrikes killed multiple people in Rafah early Tuesday, Palestinian officials said, after Israel reiterated its commitment to an offensive in southern Gaza, saying ceasefire terms responded to by Hamas were “far from” meeting its demands.
Israel said its war cabinet had “unanimously decided” to continue with the Rafah operation “to exert military pressure on Hamas.” However, Israel will send a delegation for further talks, which Qatar said would resume Tuesday.
Palestinian civilians told to evacuate eastern Rafah by the Israeli military have described their fear and despair. More than 1 million Palestinians have fled to the city during seven months of war.
The White House said the US remains opposed to an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah, while the UN chief said such a move would be “intolerable.”

Palestinians flee from Rafah, Gaza Strip, on May 6. Ramadan Abed/Reuters
Palestinian civilians told to evacuate eastern Rafah by the Israeli military have described their fear and despair at being uprooted from their homes and shelters, as Israel airstrikes hit Gaza’s southernmost city.

“We left because they distributed leaflets,” Mohammed Ghanem, a resident in eastern Rafah told a CNN stringer in the area on Monday. “(They) are striking everywhere without differentiating between children, adults, militants or non-militants. I left my house that I have been building for 17 years.”
Ghanem and his wife were pushing strollers piled high with belongings. “We no longer have a home. We are heading to Mawasi because there is no safety with the Israelis. They are killing women and children,” he said.

Another woman from eastern Rafah said, “The Israelis sent us messages ordering us to leave. We cannot stay.”

Earlier on Monday, the Israeli military called on an estimated 100,000 Palestinians living in parts of eastern Rafah to “evacuate immediately,” telling them to move to Al-Mawasi, a coastal town near the city of Khan Younis that aid groups say is not appropriate for habitation.

In a statement, the office of Israel’s prime minister said the country’s war cabinet had “unanimously decided” to continue with the Rafah operation “to exert military pressure on Hamas.”

Israeli airstrikes killed multiple people in Rafah early Tuesday, Palestinian officials said, after Israel reiterated its commitment to an offensive in southern Gaza.

Israel has vowed to “exert military pressure on Hamas” in Rafah after saying the ceasefire terms the Palestinian militant group responded to Monday were “far from” meeting its demands.

International leaders, including the United Nations chief, have urged Israel and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire deal as tensions escalate on the ground after the Israeli military called on Palestinians in eastern Rafah to “evacuate immediately.”

Negotiations stall: Hamas on Monday said it responded a ceasefire deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar, but Israel said the terms Hamas accepted were still far from meeting its “requirements.” However, Israel said it will send a delegation to Cairo for further talks, which mediator Qatar said would resume Tuesday.
Deadly strikes: Palestinian officials reported multiple fatalities in Rafah following Israeli airstrikes early Tuesday. It comes after at least 26 people were killed by strikes from late Sunday into the early hours of Monday, the Civil Defense said. Separately, video and images showed multiple explosions in Rafah on Monday night, which US officials said they did not believe to be the beginning of Israel’s operation.
Mass evacuations: Palestinians evacuating eastern Rafah described their fear and despair, after Israel’s evacuation order raised fears that its long-threatened assault on the city could be imminent. Throughout the war, more than 1 million Palestinians have fled to Rafah, where Hamas is believed to have regrouped after Israel’s destruction of much of northern Gaza.
International response: Qatar and Jordan expressed hope for a ceasefire deal, while the White House said the US remains opposed to an Israeli ground invasion of Rafah and that President Joe Biden had been briefed about where things stand on negotiations. Meanwhile, the UN secretary-general warned that a Rafah ground invasion would be “intolerable” and the UN human rights chief called Israel’s evacuation order “inhumane.”

US President Joe Biden and King Abdullah II of Jordan “discussed the latest developments in Gaza and affirmed their commitment to work together towards an enduring end to the crisis” during their lunch at the White House Monday, the White House said.

“They further underscored the need for an immediate release of the hostages held by Hamas and a sustainable ceasefire that allows for a surge of the urgently needed humanitarian assistance to be delivered safely through Gaza,” a readout of the meeting released by the White House said.
“Both remain committed to achieving a durable, lasting peace to include a pathway to a Palestinian state, with security guarantees for Israel.”
Both Biden and Abdullah “reiterated their shared commitment to facilitating the increased, sustained delivery of life-saving humanitarian assistance to Palestinian civilians in Gaza,” the White House said. Biden also thanked the king for his “critical leadership and partnership in this effort.”

Abdullah warned Biden in their meeting that an Israeli attack on Rafah, where about 1.4 million Palestinians are internally displaced “threatens to lead to a new massacre,” according to a post on X from Jordan’s Royal Hashemite Court.

Civil defense teams transport several injured people following Israeli attacks in Rafah, southern Gaza.
Civil defense teams transport several injured people following Israeli attacks in Rafah, southern Gaza. Palestinian Civil Defence
Israeli airstrikes killed a number of Palestinians and injured others early Tuesday, Palestinian officials said.

In a statement published alongside photos of at least two bodies inside body bags, the Palestinian Civil Defense said it had rescued “several injured individuals from under the rubble of several homes which were bombed by Israeli warplanes tonight in various places” in Rafah.
Eight Palestinians were killed in two attacks on Rafah, although the exact timeframe remains unclear, according to the official Palestinian news agency WAFA.

Rafah’s Kuwait hospital said it received 11 dead, according to a post on its Facebook account in the early hours of Tuesday.

The reports come after Israel reiterated its commitment to an offensive in southern Gaza, saying ceasefire terms accepted by Hamas were “far from” meeting its demands.

An Israeli ground invasion of Rafah would be “intolerable,” United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres said on Monday.

“A ground invasion in Rafah would be intolerable because of its devastating humanitarian consequences and because of its destabilizing impact in the region,” the UN chief warned.
Guterres said he had made a “very strong appeal” to both the Israeli government and the leadership of Hamas to “go an extra mile” to reach a ceasefire agreement.

“This is an opportunity that cannot be missed,” he added.

Israel says Rafah operations will go ahead as Hamas deal remains “far” from meeting its demands
From CNN’s Abeer Salman, Christian Edwards, Becky Anderson and Jeremy Diamond

Israel said the terms of a ceasefire proposal Hamas accepted on Monday remained “far from” meeting its demands and warned its military operations in Rafah would continue, even as it sent negotiators to talk to mediators.

In a statement Monday, Hamas said the head of its political bureau, Ismail Haniyeh, told the Qatari prime minister and Egyptian intelligence minister that the militant group had accepted their proposals for a ceasefire and hostage deal.

Palestinians celebrated that statement in the streets of Gaza, while in Tel Aviv, hostage families and their supporters implored Israel’s leaders to accept the deal.

However, shortly afterwards, Israel said the terms Hamas had accepted were still far from meeting its “requirements,” and reiterated its commitment to an offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, saying its war cabinet had “unanimously decided” to continue with the operation “to exert military pressure on Hamas.” It did agree, though, to send a delegation to the mediators for further talks.
Later on Monday evening, the Israel Defense Forces said it was “conducting targeted strikes against Hamas terror targets in eastern Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.” Video and images obtained by CNN showed multiple explosions in the Rafah area on Monday night.

CNN political and global affairs analyst Barak Ravid said Israeli forces were going to take over the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing in the next few hours, citing two sources with direct knowledge.

The news comes just hours after Israel ordered Palestinians living in Rafah, a city in southern Gaza, to “evacuate immediately.”

The order raised fears that Israel’s long-threatened assault on the city could be imminent. More than 1 million Palestinians have fled to Rafah, where Hamas is believed to have regrouped after Israel’s destruction of much of the north of Gaza.

Sounds of apparent gunfire at the Rafah border crossing were heard from the Egyptian side early Tuesday, in footage from Egyptian state broadcaster Al Qahera News

A view of lighting flare fired by the Israeli army in Rafah, Gaza on May 6. Hani Alshaer/Anadolu/Getty Images
Video and images obtained by CNN showed multiple explosions in the Rafah area of southern Gaza on Monday night.

Local social media accounts reported the explosions were to the east of Rafah, an area where the Israel Defense Forces had ordered an evacuation of civilians earlier Monday.

The United States is closely monitoring reports of the explosions and has “real concerns” about the situation that is unfolding, but does not believe this is the beginning of a major Israel military operation into southern Gaza, US officials told CNN.

The Biden administration remains opposed to Israel going into Rafah, as White House spokesman John Kirby told reporters repeatedly on Monday. And while the current situation is concerning, these US officials stressed that for now, they believe the reports of strikes in Rafah are limited in scope.

Indirect ceasefire negotiations between Israel and Hamas will continue on Tuesday, with a Qatari delegation heading to Cairo, according to the Qatari Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Spokesperson Dr. Majed bin Mohammed Al-Ansari said in a statement early Tuesday that the continued negotiations come after Hamas sent a response about a possible proposal, which “can be described as positive.”

Al-Ansari expressed Qatar’s “hope that the talks will culminate in reaching an agreement for an immediate and permanent ceasefire in the Gaza Strip and the exchange of prisoners and detainees, and the sustainable flow of humanitarian aid into all areas of the Strip.”

There have been international calls for an agreement to be reached on a ceasefire and hostage release deal. United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres on Monday called on the Israeli government and Hamas to agree to a ceasefire deal after Hamas said it accepted a deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar.

The Jordanian Minister of Foreign Affairs Ayman Safadi also expressed his hope for a deal to be met on X.

Hamas has said it responded to a deal proposed by Egypt and Qatar, but a senior Israeli and a US official said Hamas’ response was to a different proposal than one Israel helped craft.

Israel said the proposal Hamas accepted was far from the “necessary requirements,” while Hamas has said it would not back down from its demands in the proposal it agreed to.