During the interview, Sputnik’s Ted Rall cited an article from The Guardian which reported that Israeli forces have taken control of the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing that lies between Gaza and Egypt. A spokesperson for the Israeli government has called the attack its “mission to take out the last found Hamas brigades in Rafah”. He adds that there is now “widespread looting of existing stocks in Rafah” and that aid agencies were forced to flee warehouses leaving them unguarded.
The report added that Israel “now controls all of Gaza’s crossings for the first time since it withdrew troops and settlers from the territory nearly two decades ago.”
Dan Kovalik, an American human rights lawyer and peace activist, sat down with Sputnik's The Final Countdown on Wednesday and discussed in detail the dire situation in Rafah.
“We're witnessing something very terrible. First of all, we have to remember about 1.5 million of the 2.3 million people in Gaza fled to Rafah because they were told it was a safe zone, and it really has never been safe,” Kovalik explained. “It's been bombed periodically throughout the course of this war, if you want to call it a war. But now, it is being targeted in a very big way. As you say, no one can come in and no one can leave - that must be emphasized.”
Kovalik added that he knows of two persons who acquired appropriate clearance to leave Rafah to go to Egypt, but who are unable to leave.
“People pay thousands of dollars to an Egyptian company, which has made at least $90 million off the poor Gazans they've been charging thousands of dollars for people to leave. People pay that money, and are on waiting lists to leave. They can't leave. So, these people are trapped in a situation where they are being bombed relentlessly,” he added.
“And, already, the children, which is about half the population of all of Gaza and of Rafah itself, all the children, the UN has said, are already weakened from hunger. So, the long and short of it is, you're going to see a mass casualty rate come out of this invasion of Rafah,” said Kovalik. “Israel said it's going to carry this out for three months. I think you're going to see tens of thousands of people, mostly women and children, killed as a result of this, and it's indescribable.”
Kovalik added that the US has played a “treacherous role” by feigning care for the Palestinians while continuing to approve billions of dollars in arms to Israel. The lawyer and activist then added that Egypt has also been playing an “embarrassingly cowardly” role in the conflict. The Egyptians have “given up control” of their side to the Israelis as they receive concessions and capital from the US, he says, which in part accounts for the lack of aid flowing into Rafah.
Sputnik’s Angie Wong then asked their guest about Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s legacy; as she wondered whether the assault on Rafah will be Netanyahu’s “last dance”.
“This is his last stand,” said Kovalik. “Sadly, I don't think he'll be replaced over this. I think he sees this as his only gambit. What is likely to happen is once he does step down from office or is voted out or whatever, he will be arrested and probably jailed for corruption, but not over this. Largely, this attack on Rafah is pretty popular within Israel. There are some protests over it, but I think the polls show most people support it.”
“And I think he feels that the war needs to continue for his own survival. What his legacy is going to be, it will be terrible. Even people who support what he's doing don't like him. He's very unlikeable, even hardcore Zionist don't like him,” the activist explained. “They know that he has really destroyed Israel's credibility throughout the world in a way that it'll never come back from.”
On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said there would only be enough fuel to run health services in the south of Gaza for three more days. In addition, just a third of Gaza’s 36 hospitals and primary health care centers are operating while all face shortages of medicine, fuel and providers.
Last week, the Biden administration paused an arms shipment to Israel to prevent arms from being used against the city of Rafah, said administration officials. Reportedly, the president withheld 1,800 bombs weighing 2,000 pounds and 1,700 bombs weighing 500 pounds out of fear that they will be used against the more than one million Gazans seeking shelter in Rafah.
More than 34,000 people have died in Gaza since October, according to local health officials. That total is most likely an incomplete count as well.