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Palestinians who fled Rafah, south of Gaza, sit near their tent in Khan Yunis on May 12, 2024, amid the ongoing conflict between Israel and the armed group Hamas. (Photo by AFP via Getty Images)

Aid agencies warn that any escalation in Rafah could worsen the already deteriorating humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Officials from UNICEF, Doctors Without Borders and the Palestinian Red Crescent expressed concern about the escalation of hostilities while aid was prevented from entering the Strip.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society called for the opening of border crossings to allow more aid to enter.

“The current closure of crossings by the Israeli occupation forces, especially the vital Rafah crossing – the main supply artery for the entire Gaza Strip – prevents the entry of humanitarian aid, including food, medicine and fuel, and poses an imminent humanitarian problem.” The Palestinian Red Crescent Society said in a statement: “It is a health disaster.”

UNICEF Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa, Adele Khader, expressed these concerns.

“Civilians, already suffering from exhaustion, malnutrition and facing many traumatic events, are now facing more deaths, injuries and displacement among the rubble of their communities,” Khader said.

He continued, “Humanitarian operations, which have become the only lifeline for all residents in the entire enclave, are threatened.”

“Major northern hospitals within the evacuation zones, including Kamal Adwan Hospital, Al Awda Hospital and the Indonesian Hospital, are caught in the crossfire, severely disrupting the delivery of vital medical supplies and putting the lives of many people at risk. Those at risk of imminent starvation are now in danger,” Khader added. “They are deprived of any aid.”

Doctors Without Borders said it was forced to stop providing care at the Indonesian field hospital in Rafah due to the Israeli attack.

Michel Olivier Lacharité, head of the emergency department, said: “We had to abandon 12 different health facilities and endured 26 violent incidents, including air strikes that destroyed hospitals, tank fire on shelters outside the conflict, ground attacks against medical centers and convoys that were attacked.” “. Operations at MSF.

MSF has resumed operations at Nasser Hospital in the city of Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip, focusing on orthopedics, burn care and occupational therapy. The organization said that MSF staff fled Nasser Hospital in mid-February when Israeli forces ordered the hospital to be evacuated before storming the facility.