All Eyes on Rafah!
Source: Amnesty International
Yesterday, as many eyes were fixated on the the American Superbowl, the Israeli state began its offensive in Rafah. The small city in the far south of the Gaza Strip is already the site of a humanitarian catastrophe as more than 1.3 million displaced civilians seek shelter in a supposed ‘safe zone' (although heavy bombardment of the city has been ongoing since November 2023). Netanyahu’s plans for the “evacuation of the civilian population” is only the latest stage in Israel’s ethnic cleansing campaign of the Gaza Strip.
According to statements made by Amnesty International on Feb 9th: “[The evacuation order] may amount to the crime of forcible transfer” and “[a] ground operation in Rafah, which is under intense bombardment, will also have a disastrous impact on the entire humanitarian aid system in Gaza which is already overwhelmed and struggling to provide support to a population facing the real and imminent risk of genocide.” These statements have been echoed by other international human rights organizations such as Human Rights Watch and the World Health Organization. Amnesty International today released a report on the massacres yesterday, emphasizing three points:
At least 95 civilians – nearly half of them children – killed in four unlawful strikes in Rafah
Attacks took place in southern governorate supposed to be “safe”
All four strikes are likely direct attacks on civilians and civilian objects and must be investigated as war crimes
This comes just two weeks after an International Court of Justice ruling established that Israel was plausibly committing genocide, and ordered the Zionist state to take steps to prevent genocide in Gaza.
Meanwhile, Mayor Ken Sim continues to stand with the state committing genocide and has refused to say the word “Palestinians”; BC NDP Premier David Eby has still not called for a ceasefire; and the complicit federal government, along with other complicit states, has pulled funding from the UN Relief & Works Agency, an act the Lemkin Institute for Genocide Prevention has said “represents a shift by several countries from potential complicity in genocide to direct involvement in engineered famine.
We must bear witness and tell the stories of the Palestinians that media and institutions have demonized and dehumanized. We must flood the streets, occupy every space we can, and mobilize to stop the genocide, call for an immediate and permanent ceasefire, and stand firm in emphasizing Palestinians’ right to resist occupation and return to their homes.
Call for Boycotts, Divestments and Sanctions.
Say Free Palestine.
Time is up, we must act now.