Live Update 
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, February 8, 2024
From the Liveblog of
Thursday, February 8, 2024
US warns Israel that Rafah operation without proper planning risks ‘disaster’
Palestinians who fled their homes seen near their tents in Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip on February 5, 2024. (Atia Mohammed/Flash90)
The United States warns Israel that staging a military push into the southern Gaza city of Rafah without proper planning would run the risk of becoming a “disaster.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said last night that he has ordered troops to “prepare to operate” in Rafah, and air strikes have been stepped up.
State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel says Washington has “yet to see any evidence of serious planning for such an operation,” adding: “To conduct such an operation right now with no planning and little thought in an area” where one million people are sheltering “would be a disaster.”
