Egypt threatens Israel to suspend peace deal if IDF attacks Rafah

Egypt threatens to suspend a key peace treaty with Israel if the IDF enters the densely populated border town of Rafah. This could also lead to the closure of the main route for the supply of humanitarian aid.

RBC-Ukraine reported this regarding the Associated Press.

According to the publication, the threat to suspend the Camp David Accords, which have helped maintain stability for almost half a century, came after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said that the deployment of troops to Rafah was necessary to win the four-month war against Hamas.

It is noted that more than half of the population of the Gaza Strip fled to Rafah, fleeing the fighting in other areas and settling in tent camps and UN-run shelters near the border. Egypt, for its part, fears a massive influx of hundreds of thousands of refugees.

Meanwhile, humanitarian organizations have also warned that an offensive on Rafah could worsen the already catastrophic humanitarian situation in Gaza.

Meanwhile, the Hamas-owned Al-Aqsa TV channel quoted an unnamed militant spokesman as saying that the invasion of Rafah would "undermine" the US, Egyptian, and Qatari-mediated talks aimed at a ceasefire and the release of Israeli hostages.

Netanyahu, for his part, suggested that Rafah's civilians could flee to the north, as there are "many areas" that have already been cleared by the IDF.

"But the offensive has caused widespread destruction, especially in northern Gaza, and fierce fighting continues in central Gaza and the southern city of Khan Younis. A ground operation in Rafah could also lead to the closure of the crossing, cutting off one of the only routes for the delivery of much-needed food and medicine," the newspaper explains.

Author - Serhii Kolomiets, 12/02/2024