Israel is conducting an investigation following reports that an airstrike it executed in Rafah resulted in the deaths of dozens of individuals within a tent camp for displaced people.
Authorities in Hamas-controlled Gaza have stated that the airstrike killed at least 45 people and injured almost 250 others. Israel claimed that the strike was aimed at two senior Hamas terrorists. Gazan officials reported that the strike hit Rafah’s Tel al Sultan neighborhood, setting fires that swept through the tent camp.
Maj. Gen. Yifat Tomer-Yerushalmi, Israel’s chief military lawyer, described the incident as “very grave” on Monday and confirmed it is under investigation, as reported by the Times of Israel.
“The details of the incident are still under an investigation, which we are committed to conducting to the fullest extent,” she said during a conference.
Should the death toll be verified, the airstrike would represent the deadliest occurrence in Rafah since Israel’s recent incursion into the area earlier this month.
The White House’s National Security Council is aware of the incident and is in the process of collecting more information about the strike, according to an official who spoke to Axios.
In a statement, the Israel Defense Forces stated that the airstrike was conducted to eliminate Hamas targets in the region. They acknowledged reports of civilian casualties and indicated that the incident is under review.
“The strike was carried out against legitimate targets under international law, using precise munitions and based on accurate intelligence that pointed to Hamas’ use of the area,” the IDF statement read.
Approximately 900,000 Palestinians have evacuated Rafah this month following IDF’s evacuation orders for parts of the city, which were issued after Hamas launched an attack from Rafah near a crucial border crossing, the main entry point for humanitarian aid.
The conflict in Gaza has been ongoing since shortly after the Oct. 7 Hamas attack against Israel, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of Israeli civilians and marked the first invasion of Israeli territory since 1948.
Since then, Israel has been working to dismantle Hamas’s terrorist infrastructure, a brutal endeavor that has led to civilian casualties in the highly populated Gaza Strip.
