Gaza: Rafah offensive will have catastrophic consequences

“People in Rafah have been forced to endure dire conditions, with limited food and water, extremely limited access to medical care, and regular bombings," says Arunn Jegan, MSF Humanitarian Lead who returned to Australia from Palestine this week.

"There is nowhere safe to go and find refuge elsewhere if they attempted to flee Rafah. Many of them have already been displaced multiple times. A ground offensive will most certainly make delivering humanitarian assistance and providing medical care near impossible."

"An offensive on Rafah would also mean yet again that medical staff and patients would be put in danger and forced to leave medical facilities. We have been forced to leave nine healthcare facilities in Gaza since the beginning of the war.”

“We are already witnessing complete and utter devastation in Gaza. No one and nowhere is safe. More than 1.9 million people in Gaza—nearly 85 per cent of the population—are estimated to be forcibly displaced and living in unsafe, unhealthy conditions. Many of these displaced people had fled to Rafah. An Israeli ground offensive in Rafah would be yet another layer of disaster. We would witness more deaths, more devastation.

"This offensive is also going to further aggravate the damage to the health system, which is barely functioning," says Aurélie Godard, MSF Medical Team Leader in Gaza. 

"Like we saw in the north, some hospitals will no longer be accessible and are at high risk of being hit or destroyed. We have begun to discharge patients at Rafah Indonesian Field Hospital, those who can walk, as we also prepare for a possible evacuation.  

"The few field hospitals or alternative structures being installed will not be able to cope with an influx of wounded patients on top of regular medical needs such as deliveries and chronic diseases. Health needs will increase massively while access to health care will further decrease."

“The strikes in Rafah are happening in complete defiance of worldwide calls for an enduring ceasefire," says Jegan. "We have seen time and again in this war that the humanitarian principles and laws that States fought hard to implement, are being ransacked with impunity before our very eyes.

“Just as our world leaders condemned Hamas for their unforgiveable atrocities and killing of 1,200 people, Israel must follow international humanitarian law and cease its relentless and indiscriminate attacks, which have now claimed the lives of more than 34,000 Palestinians and caused horrific injuries to over 75,000 people.

“For now, a sustained ceasefire is the only way we can move forward. The Australian Government must apply diplomatic pressure and use all its power to ensure that Israel stops this catastrophic assault on civilians before the offensive gets underway.”

MSF currently operates in three hospitals (Al-Aqsa hospital, Rafah Indonesian Field Hospital, and El-Emirati Maternity Hospital), one primary healthcare centre (Al-Shaboura clinic) and three healthcare facilities in Al Mawasi, in Rafah area.

Our teams are offering surgical support, wound care, physiotherapy, post-partum care, primary health care, vaccination, and mental health services, but systematic sieges and evacuation orders on various hospitals are pushing our activities onto an ever-smaller territory and limiting response.

MSF teams comprise 430 people, mainly Palestinian with 30 International mobile staff supporting. IMS staff are mostly based in Rafah (south Gaza), Khan Younis and Deir Al Balah (Middle Area) to support our Palestinian colleagues. Most of the team is composed of surgical and emergency staff, the rest offering logistic support and coordination.