India on Thursday raised grave concerns over the recent attack on Rafah by Israeli Forces that killed at least 45 including women and children. The Ministry of External Affairs, during a weekly press briefing in the national capital, dubbed Israeli action on Gaza's southern region Rafah, "heartbreaking" and stressed New Delhi always called for the protection of the civilian population during the war.
"The heartbreaking loss of civilian lives in the displacement camp in Rafah is a matter of deep concern. We have consistently called for the protection of the civilian population and respect for international humanitarian law in the ongoing conflict," the Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
Notably, Israel launched a 'precise airstrike' on Sunday night targeting two militants of Hamas, but it set fire to a tent camp and killed 45 Palestinians who were sleeping in Rafah. This triggered a major uproar, prompting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to admit the attack. However, he tagged the attack "a mistake" and assured a full investigation into the case.
Two-state solution
India, also echoed the same and said: "We also note that the Israeli side has already accepted responsibility for it as a tragic accident and announced an investigation into the incident.."
The MEA spokesperson noted that India was one of the first countries to recognise Palestine and has long supported the two-state solution to end the Israel-Palestine conflict.
"India was one of the first countries to recognise the state of Palestine in the late 1980s, and we have long supported two state solution which entails the establishment of a sovereign, viable and independent state of Palestine within recognised and mutually agreed borders, living side by side with Israel in peace," he said
"All eyes on Rafah"
Social media sites are now flooded with posts with the hashtag- "All Eyes on Rafah", where personalities across the genre are driving the steering against Israel's latest attack on the Rafah border. The attack on the Rafah crossing, which was earlier marked as the "safe region" for the Palestinians who were chasing the time to hide themselves from Israeli bombs, were killed in the raid.
In fact, Israel's main ally in the war, the United States also decried the action on Rafah. Earlier on Tuesday, the US Vice-President said that "the word tragic doesn't even begin to describe" an Israeli airstrike that triggered a fire in a tent camp in the Gazan city of Rafah, killing 45 Palestinians. Harris, speaking outside an event in Washington, was responding to a reporter's question about the weekend airstrike. Harris, speaking at a ceremonial event in Washington, did not respond to a follow-up question about whether attacks in Rafah crossed a "red line."
What is the current situation in Rafah?
Israeli tanks mounted raids across Rafah in defiance of the World Court for a second day on Wednesday, after Washington said the assault did not amount to a major ground operation in the southern Gazan city that US officials have warned Israel to avoid.
Israel sent its tanks into the heart of Rafah for the first time on Tuesday, despite an order from the International Court of Justice to end its attacks on the city, where many Palestinians had taken refuge from widespread bombardment.
The United States, Israel's closest ally, reiterated its opposition to a major Israeli ground offensive in Rafah but said on Tuesday it did not believe such an operation was under way.
Rafah residents said on Wednesday that Israeli tanks had pushed into Tel Al-Sultan in western Rafah and Yibna and near Shaboura in the centre before retreating towards a buffer zone on the border with Egypt, in contrast with offensives elsewhere.
(With inputs from agency)
