NEW YORK, May 24, 2024—As the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Israel today to immediately stop its military offensive in the southern Gazan city of Rafah, Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) calls once again for an immediate and sustained ceasefire and for the delivery of humanitarian aid to be scaled up across Gaza. Over the past three weeks, Israel’s offensive in Rafah has intensified and heavy fighting is taking place in the north of Gaza.
Avril Benoît, chief executive officer of MSF USA, said:
“Today's decision by the ICJ to order Israel to halt its offensive on Rafah in southern Gaza and reopen the Rafah crossing confirms, yet again, how catastrophic the situation is for people there and the desperate need for delivery of humanitarian aid to immediately be scaled up.
“Time and time again, we’ve raised the alarm about the disastrous potential consequences of this offensive on Rafah after it was announced for the first time in February. Three weeks into the escalation of military operations there, the very real impact is clear: the situation in Gaza, including in Rafah, has never been so dire.
“Approximately 900,000 people have been displaced from Rafah in the past three weeks, according to the United Nations—many of whom had fled to the area from other parts of Gaza when the city was declared a ‘safe zone.’ Essential humanitarian and medical aid has barely entered since the beginning of May, leaving hundreds of thousands of people without food, water, shelter, or medicine and hospitals without fuel. Medical services are disappearing one by one as evacuation orders and acts of war force health care workers to leave their patients behind. People have been traumatized by what they’ve been through over the last seven months.
“A ceasefire is the only way to stop the indiscriminate killing of civilians and allow for the substantial provision and delivery of aid on a meaningful scale, which is needed now more than ever throughout the Strip."
