Key U.S. Allies Warn Israel Against Planned Offensive In Rafah

(Bloomberg) -- Three long-time supporters of Israel and key US allies issued a joint statement warning Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu against a planned offensive in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, as international calls for a ceasefire mount.

Canada, Australia and New Zealand said Thursday that they were “gravely concerned” about a potential operation by the Israel Defense Forces in Rafah, adding the impact on civilians would be “devastating.”

More than one million people fled to the southern Gaza city on the border with Egypt to seek refuge from Israel’s war against Hamas. The US, European Union and Arab states have voiced strong criticism of the potential offensive.

Israel appears intent on pushing forward as it tries to destroy Hamas, designated a terrorist organization by the US and European Union. Israeli officials say Rafah is key to their operations in Gaza because it still harbors Hamas fighters. They’ve said they will allow civilians to leave the city before any assault.

“We urge the Israeli government not to go down this path,” the three nations said, calling instead for a sustainable ceasefire. “There is simply nowhere else for civilians to go.”

The statement was signed by Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Australia’s Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. It comes a few days after US President Joe Biden urged Netanyahu to not go ahead with a military operation in Rafah without a “credible and executable plan” to shield civilians.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Penny Wong told a Senate hearing in Canberra earlier Thursday that any Israeli operation in Rafah was “unjustifiable.” Australia’s “message to Israel is: ‘Listen to the world. Do not go down this path,’” she said.

Germany’s foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, arrived in Israel on Wednesday to tell officials, including Netanyahu, that an attack on Rafah could create a humanitarian disaster.

“I have repeated here that people cannot simply vanish into thin air,” she said to German broadcaster ZDF on Wednesday. “Protective corridors are needed, safe places are needed where all these people can find refuge after they have left northern Gaza at the request of the Israeli army. We talked about this intensively today.”

Israel is yet to say when it plans to move into Rafah — though it has already launched some airstrikes on the city, killing dozens of people — or when it will open a safe corridor for people to exit.

The war in Gaza erupted when Hamas attacked southern Israel from Gaza on Oct. 7, killing 1,200 people.  More than 28,000 have been killed by Israel’s retaliatory air and ground assault on Gaza, according to health officials in the Hamas-run territory.

Hamas abducted around 250 people during its incursion. Roughly 100 were freed during a week-long truce that ended on Dec. 1 and another two were freed on Monday by special forces. The Israeli military has said that of the roughly 135 captives still in Gaza, 31 are dead.

Mediators including Qatar, Egypt and the US are holding peace talks in Cairo this week to try to achieve a ceasefire in return for the release of some of the hostages. Yet Netanyahu pulled out of follow-up talks scheduled for Thursday, indicating a deal is far from imminent.

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