On Tuesday 18 June 2024, Israeli airstrikes killed at least 17 Palestinians in two of the Gaza Strip’s historic refugee camps, as Israeli tanks advanced into Rafah, the enclave’s southern city, according to residents and doctors. Residents reported intense tank and plane bombardments in numerous sections of Rafah, where more than a million people had sought refuge before May. Since then, as Israeli forces invaded the city, the vast majority of the population has fled north.

“Rafah is being bombed without any intervention from the world, and the occupation (Israel) is acting freely here,” a Rafah resident and father of six told Reuters via a chat application. Israeli tanks were operating in Tel Al-Sultan, Al-Izba, and Zurub in Rafah’s west, as well as Shaboura in the city center. They also maintained control of the Eastern Districts and fringes, as well as the border with Egypt and the critical Rafah crossing.

“There are Israeli forces in most areas, there is heavy resistance too and they are making them pay dearly but the occupation is not ethical and they are destroying the city and the refugee camp,” claimed a resident. According to Palestinian Health Officials, one guy was killed in the morning by Israeli fire on the Eastern side of Rafah. Medics said they thought many more people had died in recent days and weeks, but rescuers were unable to reach them.

The Israeli Military stated that it was continuing “precise, intelligence-based activity” in Rafah, killing multiple Palestinian gunmen in close-range battle and seizing weapons throughout the previous day. The air force targeted dozens of targets around the Gaza Strip in the last day, it added. According to doctors, two separate Israeli air attacks on two houses in the central Gaza Strip killed 17 Palestinians in Al-Nuseirat and Al-Bureij, two designated refugee camps that contain families and descendants of people who fled to Gaza during the 1948 war that led to Israel’s creation.

“Every hour of delay, Israel kills more people; we want a ceasefire now,” said Khalil, 45, a Gaza teacher who is now stranded with his family in Deir Al-Balah city in the central Gaza Strip. “Enough of our blood,” I say to Israel, America, and our leaders. “The war must end,” he told Reuters over a chat app. The Israeli Military statement made no direct mention of the 17 casualties but stated that soldiers continued to engage against extremist factions in central Gaza.

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