The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) announced on Monday that forced displacement has driven more than one million people to flee Rafah, a city in the southern Gaza Strip.
Relief organizations report that approximately one million Palestinians were residing in Rafah after escaping Israeli attacks in other parts of the Gaza Strip. Since early May, the Israeli military has conducted what it describes as a limited operation in Rafah aimed at uprooting Hamas fighters and dismantling the infrastructure used by the group that governs Gaza.
The Israeli army has issued orders for civilians to move to an “expanded humanitarian zone” about 20 kilometers away. However, many Palestinians who have been moving north and south within Gaza over the past few months report that they remain vulnerable to Israeli attacks wherever they go.
UNRWA stated that thousands of families have now sought refuge in damaged and destroyed facilities in Khan Younis, where the agency continues to provide essential services despite “increasing challenges.”
“The conditions are indescribable,” UNRWA added.
