Eight months into Israel’s genocide in Gaza, Israel is beginning its invasion of Rafah, where more than half of Gaza’s population have been sheltering. This escalation will lead to more war crimes. Experts have warned an invasion of Rafah will lead to a massacre and humanitarian catastrophe for a population already facing famine. The United States can put an immediate end to these atrocities and must halt ALL military aid and weapons shipments to the Israeli government without delay.
TAKE ACTION: URGE PRESIDENT BIDEN TO DEMAND ISRAEL HALT RAFAH INVASION, STOP AN IMMINENT CATASTROPHE
Reports from Rafah are grim, Israeli forces are already forcibly displacing Palestinian civilians from their homes and pushing hundreds of thousands of Palestinians into neighboring areas like Khan Yunis and Al-Mawasi. Conditions are horrifying, with over 80% of buildings destroyed, and aid workers struggling to support Palestinians with minimal infrastructure. Rafah has become home to 1.4 million Palestinians, including 600,000 children, with nowhere safe for them to seek refuge. The consequences of this operation, if allowed to proceed, are catastrophic.
For months, President Biden has said repeatedly that Israel’s invasion of Rafah would be a “red line.” We urgently call on President Biden to act on his words, intervene, and demand an immediate halt to Israel’s clear objective of complete genocide of Gaza. The international community cannot stand idly by while such egregious atrocities unfold.
The evacuation order issued in Rafah is not a logistical possibility; it’s a death order. Israel is forcing Palestinians, who have already been driven out of their homes under bombs and starvation for the last 200+ days, to “find safety” and “evacuate” when they have nowhere left to go. For more than half a year, Israel claimed Rafah was a safe zone. The distance Palestinians are now forced to traverse ranges from 1.5 to over 4 hours and will expose them to certain dangers.
Responding to this catastrophe requires resources and capacities that many displaced Palestinians simply do not have due to the dire circumstances imposed by Israel, aided by the United States. Palestinians need consistent access to communication, physical strength amid disease and near-starvation, means of transportation, and a shelter to go to. This doesn’t include acute medical needs they also cannot meet because of Israel’s persistent and ubiquitous destruction.
President Biden must act immediately to ensure the safety and well-being of Palestinians in Rafah and throughout Gaza. The President must use all leverage to force Israel to cease its invasion of the last refuge for Palestinians in Gaza and prevent another addition to the ongoing catastrophe in Gaza. We must reiterate our call for the President to facilitate an immediate sustainable, permanent ceasefire. Take action.
