'We hope Israelis will hear our views on Rafah,' US envoy to UN says

ISTANBUL

The US ambassador to UN said they “hope Israelis will hear our views” on Rafah, the southern Gaza city where the Israeli War Cabinet authorized to conduct military operations earlier this week.

“We said we were concerned about a major ground operation in Rafah,” Robert Wood told Anadolu in a brief interview in New York on Friday. “We are communicating with Israelis daily on this issue daily. We will continue to do that,” he said.

He added that US officials “make very clear” to Israelis that there are “other ways to achieve your objectives” rather than “going forward with full-fledged ground operation.”

“We consulted them on some of those ideas. And so we hope that they will hear our views,” the envoy said.

Israel has killed nearly 35,000 Palestinians since an Oct. 7, 2023 cross-border incursion by Hamas that claimed 1,200 lives. The onslaught has reduced much of Gaza to rubble, besides causing widespread hunger and disease.

Israeli forces this week issued evacuation orders for Palestinians in eastern Rafah, home to some 1.4 million displaced Palestinians where its invasion is underway.

The US says a full offensive in Rafah would be a humanitarian disaster, but Israel sees it necessary to finish off the “remaining Hamas battalions.”