The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) announced a tactical ceasefire of four hours in a camp near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Saturday.
Avichay Adraee, the IDF spokesperson in Arabic, announced the social media platform “X”
He stated that military activities in the area would be temporarily suspended for humanitarian reasons. Adraee noted that this pause would enable residents to access supplies.
Adraee also mentioned that the ongoing fighting and military advances by the Israeli Defense Forces in the Khan Yunis area prevented civilians from traveling through the Salah al-Din axis in the northern and eastern parts of Khan Yunis city.
The IDF claimed that it would allow humanitarian movement for civilians through the western bypass axis located west of Khan Yunis.
The movement in both directions from the Rafah and Khan Yunis areas towards Deir al-Balah and the central refugee camps would be facilitated through the following routes: Rashid Street (Sea Street) and the Martyrs’ Street in Deir al-Balah.
Earlier, the Israeli military had urged residents of the besieged city of Khan Yunis in the southern coastal region to seek safety in Rafah, near the Egyptian border.
Additionally, the IDF allocated a route for civilians to bypass the road that had previously been used for escape through Khan Yunis, which the military deemed dangerous.
Reports indicated that thousands of Palestinians had sought refuge in tents in Rafah. Following the expansion of Israeli attacks into the central part of the Gaza Strip, there is scarcely any room for internally displaced persons, according to United Nations data.
A few days ago, Thomas White, the director of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) in Gaza, stated that cities like Rafah were already crowded with displaced individuals and could hardly accommodate more.
