South Africa has expressed grave concerns by a planned Israeli ground assault against the southern Gaza Strip city of Rafah that is housing more than 1.5 Palestinians.

That comes a month after an ICJ order addressing the Israeli regime to take all possible measures to prevent crime of genocide against Palestinians in the Gaza Strip.
 
In a filing on Monday, South Africa condemned an “intense, unprecedented” Israeli military aggression against Rafah followed by an ongoing threat of yet further intensification of the assault.
 
It referred to an announcement by the office of Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu regarding submission of a plan for evacuation of the Palestinians in Rafah ahead of a ground invasion against the southern city in Gaza Strip.
 
It also mentioned that Rafah, normally home to 280,000 Palestinians has turned into a shelter for more than 1.4 million displaced people who, according to a red Cross announcement, have nowhere else to go.
 
South Africa touched upon a previous warning by the UN Secretary General that a large-scale military assault against Rafah would increase an “already humanitarian nightmare with untold regional consequences” while the UN fund for children has urgently highlighted the need for the last remaining hospitals, shelters, markets and water systems in Rafah to remain functioning.
 
The Republic of South Africa expressed grave concerns against an unprecedented military offensive targeting Rafah and warned that the massive scale of killing, harm and destruction will come in breach of both the previous order by ICJ and the Genocide Convention.
 
It called upon the Court to consider that the ongoing situation in Rafah requires the tribunal exercising its power to prevent further breach of the rights of Palestinians.
 
That comes as Israeli regime is preparing a ground assault on Rafah which has previously been declared by Tel Aviv regime as “safe zone” for the displaced Palestinians.
 
Meanwhile the Palestinian media announce that on day 131 of the Israeli attacks against the besieged Gaza Strip, nearly 28,600 Palestinians have been killed and almost 68,300 others wounded, most of them children and women.