Special Task Forces then searched the immediate area. “This is a limited and well-targeted operation against very specific targets,” the Israeli army said in a statement, according to AFP. The army also said that 20 people were killed in the night operation in Rafah in Hamas militants and found three tunnel shafts, the BBC reported.
It has been critically assessed by the representative of the European Union’s foreign affairs, Žuzeps Borel. “The offensive in Rafah has started again, ignoring the call of the international community – the United States, European Union members and everyone else – to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu not to attack. I fear that it will cost many lives. No matter what anyone says, there are no safe zones in Gaza,” EU the official told the media.
The UN humanitarian agency said Israel also closed both the Rafah border crossing and the Keremshalom border crossing in the southern Gaza Strip after the new military operation began. These two border points are said to be the two biggest arteries for the delivery of vitally necessary humanitarian aid on a daily basis.
The BBC believes that taking control of the border crossing at Rafah could be a step towards controlling a larger area along the border with Egypt in the southern Gaza Strip.
