Israel attacks Rafah refugee camp again, 21 killed

A number of Israeli tanks are positioned in the heart of Rafah city in southern Gaza. ists and eyewitnesses said this. Israeli airstrikes are also ongoing in Rafah refugee camps. 21 people were killed in the latest attack.

On Tuesday, the tanks took over al-Awda intersection in the heart of the city for the first time since the start of the Israeli offensive in Rafah. This place is about 500 meters away from the Egyptian border. Israel is carrying out heavy shelling there.

Witnesses told Reuters news agency that Israeli tanks and armored vehicles equipped with machine guns were seen near the Al Awda mosque.

On Tuesday, an Israeli airstrike on another Palestinian refugee tent camp west of Rafah killed 21 people, Gaza's health ministry said. At least 12 of the dead are women, the Ministry of Health said.

An Israeli military spokesman said, 'So far, we are not aware of this incident.'

International unease has turned to outrage over the past three weeks of Israeli attacks on the city of Rafah, the last refuge for Palestinian refugees in Gaza. In particular, the international community strongly condemned the Israeli attack on a tent camp in West Rafah last Sunday, in which 45 people were killed.

Israel said the attack targeted two top Hamas officials. No civilian casualties were intended.

World leaders have referred to Rafah as a 'humanitarian zone' and called on Israel to comply with the UN's top court order. The International Court of Justice (ICJ) last Friday (May 24) ordered Israel to immediately stop military operations in Gaza's Rafah.

Tuesday's attack in Rafah al-Mawasi took place in a new humanitarian area declared by Israel. When Israel launched its offensive in Rafah in early May, it asked civilians in West Rafah to evacuate the area.