Rafah Encirclement and Displacement

A BBC Arabic report profiles Hajjah Umm Mohammed, whose son, 23-year-old Palestinian Red Crescent paramedic Rifaat Radwan, was among 15 emergency workers shot dead by Israeli troops near Rafah on 23 March. Video from Rifaat’s recovered phone shows the ambulance convoy had lights on, contradicting initial Israeli claims they approached “suspiciously” without lights. Israel later called the earlier account “mistaken,” said troops perceived a threat due to a prior encounter, and alleged—without evidence—that at least six of the dead were Hamas operatives; the bodies were buried in sand by troops and found a week later. A surviving paramedic described being fired upon without warning and alleged mistreatment in detention. The PRCS calls the killings deliberate and a war crime, demanding an independent investigation, while the IDF says it is conducting a deeper internal inquiry. The piece underscores the personal loss for Rifaat’s family, who retrieved his decomposed body instead of celebrating Eid.

Israel has expanded ground operations across Gaza, creating buffer zones and issuing 20 evacuation orders since March 18 that have displaced roughly 400,000 people and pushed civilians into a shrinking coastal area. Over two-thirds of Gaza is now under evacuation or designated “no-go” zones, with Rafah effectively encircled. Defense Minister Israel Katz says large areas will be held indefinitely and hinted at promoting “voluntary” migration, though public U.S. support appears muted. Despite Israeli assertions of progress, Hamas remains active, with rockets still being fired. Humanitarian conditions have sharply deteriorated amid a six-week aid blockade: overcrowded shelters, widespread hunger, shuttered bakeries, severe medicine shortages, and constrained UN operations. Civilians describe squalid, unsafe tent encampments and repeated, confusing displacement orders as strikes continue to reduce available shelter. No new ceasefire is in sight.

Greenpeace UK’s co-executive director Will McCallum and five other activists were arrested after dumping hundreds of liters of biodegradable red dye into the pond outside the U.S. Embassy in London to protest U.S. arms sales to Israel amid the Gaza war. Police said the group fled but were detained nearby on suspicion of criminal damage and conspiracy to cause criminal damage; there was no breach of the embassy’s secure perimeter. Greenpeace said the action aimed to highlight deaths in Gaza and urged the U.S. and U.K. to stop arming Israel. The State Department did not immediately comment.

For the first time since Hamas took control 18 years ago, some Gazans are publicly protesting against the group, blaming it for the current war and Gaza’s devastation. Lawyer Moumen Al Natour, a former Hamas political prisoner, spoke out despite fearing retaliation, noting rising anger as living conditions deteriorate—power outages, widespread destruction, and scarce, unsafe water. A March 26 protest in Beit Lahiya featured chants calling for Hamas to leave. Al Natour says Gazans support releasing Israeli hostages, want an end to Hamas rule, and seek locally focused governance that prioritizes basic services over conflict. He adds some residents even welcome proposals to evacuate and rebuild Gaza due to unlivable conditions.

Israel says its forces have encircled Rafah in southern Gaza and established a security corridor—the Morag Axis—separating Rafah from Khan Younis, signaling plans to intensify operations across most of Gaza. Defense Minister Israel Katz framed this as a decisive phase to defeat Hamas and free hostages, and mentioned “voluntary relocation” options aligned with a U.S. vision. Rafah authorities condemned the new “security zone” as an illegal unilateral move violating international law and Palestinian rights. The IDF also issued new evacuation orders in central Gaza, which the U.N. warned are forcing Palestinians into ever smaller, unsafe areas with limited access to services. UNRWA reports nearly 400,000 newly displaced since a March 18 cease-fire breakdown. Separately, the EU and several countries criticized Israel’s order to close eight UNRWA schools in East Jerusalem. Gaza’s Health Ministry reports at least 50,933 killed and 116,045 injured since the war began. In related regional developments, U.S. and Iranian officials held brief, mediated talks in Oman on Iran’s nuclear program, with plans to continue negotiations amid rising regional tensions.