FALCON POWERS – A video clip showed Israeli soldiers at the Rafah crossing on the Palestinian side, where they had spread out and converted a mosque into a kitchen.
The clip, which was posted by Israeli soldiers, showed the soldiers converting the crossing’s mosque into a kitchen, while tanks and armored vehicles were deployed in its outer courtyards.
International condemnation is escalating, calling on Israel to open the crossing and allow the passage of patients and the flow of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip, which is now at risk of famine.
Last May, Israeli tanks stormed the crossing’s facilities located south of Gaza, completely halting the movement of travelers and the entry of aid into the Strip.
The Rafah crossing is a main entry point for humanitarian aid to Gaza, and Israel says the eastern part of the city is a strategic site for Hamas. More than 1.3 million displaced Palestinians live in the city.
Israel believes that controlling the Rafah crossing will eliminate Hamas’s main ability to show that it still governs Gaza.