Tanks move into centre of Rafah as Israel's global isolation grows

Tanks reached the middle of Rafah yesterday as Israel's global isolation deepened, with three European countries formally recognising a Palestinian state and the UN security council calling an emergency meeting to discuss the situation in Gaza.

- Emma Graham-Hatrison

Overnight Israeli forces again attacked the Tel al-Sultan area, where at least 45 people were killed on Sunday by an airstrike and huge fire in an area crowded with refugee tents.

Twenty-one people were killed in the latest attack, more than half of them women, authorities in Gaza said. At least one bomb landed about 300 metres from Sunday's strike site.

Growing international outrage about the Israeli push into Rafah, including an order from the UN's top court to stop the offensive and sharp criticism from the US, Israel's most important ally, after the weekend attack, have not had any apparent impact on its military plans.

The prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, described Sunday's strike as a "tragic mistake" but vowed to continue the operation. Later a spokesperson for the Israeli military said its airstrike had not caused the fire.

R Adm Daniel Hagari said jets used small bombs to kill two Hamas commanders inside buildings about 180 metres from tents where the fire broke out. "Our munition alone could not have ignited a fire of this size," he said, adding that the military was investigating whether the "unexpected and unintended" fire had been caused by secondary explosions at what they claimed was an ammunition warehouse near tents.

About 1 million Palestinians have fled Rafah since early May, but hundreds of thousands are still sheltering there, Unrwa, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, said yesterday.

"[They left] with nowhere safe to go and amidst bombardments, lack of food and water, piles of waste and unsuitable living conditions," Unrwa said in a post on X. "Day after day, providing assistance and protection becomes nearly impossible."