Gazans fear Israeli attack on their last refuge; US launches retaliatory strikes
Source: Reuters
Gazans fear Israeli attack on their last refuge; US launches retaliatory strikes
By Nidal Al-Mughrabi and Mohammed Salem
February 2, 2024 5:10 PM EST Updated 3 hours ago
GAZA, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Israeli forces shelled the outskirts of Rafah on Friday, the last refuge on the southern edge of the Gaza Strip where hundreds of thousands displaced people, penned against the border fence, feared a new assault with nowhere left to flee.
The United States also began retaliatory strikes in Iraq and Syria, the U.S. military said, after a drone attack in Jordan this week killed three U.S. troops, developments likely to increase concern about spiralling tensions in the Middle East.
The U.S. strikes targeted Iran-backed militants that Washington has blamed for the drone attack, the first deadly strike against U.S. forces since the Israel-Gaza war erupted in October.
More than half of Gaza's 2.3 million residents are now homeless and crammed into Rafah on the Egyptian border. Tens of thousands have arrived in recent days, carrying belongings in their arms and pulling children on carts, since Israeli forces last week launched one of the biggest assaults of the war to capture adjacent Khan Younis, the main southern city.
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Read more: https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/israel-turns-focus-gaza-attack-rafah-hamas-weighs-ceasefire-proposal-2024-02-01/
Alternate no-paywall link: https://www.yahoo.com/news/israel-turns-focus-gaza-attack-234947519.html
