The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR) expresses its deep concern over the exacerbating humanitarian disaster resulting from the Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) widescale ground invasion into Rafah in southern Gaza Strip, and its complete isolation from Khan Yunis since 31 March 2025, along with the ongoing bombing and destruction of the remaining houses in the city.

Despite the mass forced displacement evacuation orders issued by IOF on 31 March 2025 to Rafah’s residents, forcing around 100,000 civilians to flee once again to the al-Mawasi area in Khan Yunis, many families were unable to evacuate due to the lack of transportation, its unaffordable high costs, and drivers’ fear of being directly targeted by the IOF. Moreover, the areas where residents were ordered to seek refuge were unsafe, as many shelters and tents had been repeatedly bombed. This tragic situation forced many to stay in the city under extremely harsh and dangerous conditions.

Over the past few days, Israeli warplanes targeted without prior warning at least two inhabited houses in Kherbet al-‘Adas neighborhood in Rafah. As a result, 13 people, including a family of 9 members; the parents and their 6 children, were killed, while a young man was slightly injured and remains trapped along with five other residents, including four elderlies, among them two women. They have sent several appeals to international organizations for evacuation from Rafah.

According to PCHR’s field documentation, in the early hours of 15 April 2025, Israeli warplanes launched an airstrike on Qishta family house in Kherbet al-‘Adas neighborhood in Rafah. As a result, nine people were killed, including a family of eight, after the house was completely destroyed. The killed were identified as: Ashraf Na’eem Saleem Qishta (54), his wife Manal Sa’eed Hamdan al-Sha’ir/ Qishta (41), their children Shahd (23), Maria (18), Aya (16), Maha (14), Eman (11), Taher (6), along with a their elderly neighbor, Suliman Mohammed Qishta. Their bodies remain trapped under the rubble, as ambulance and civil defense crews have been unable to reach the targeted house due to the IOF’s ongoing ground invasion of Rafah.

On Thursday, 17 April 2025, Israeli warplanes bombed another house belonging to Qishta family in Kherbet al-‘Adas neighborhood, killing 4 people. Those killed were identified as: Shariqi Melahi Hafiz Qishta, Yehia Subhi Shariqi Qishta, Sa’eed Yaseen Jaser, and Hasan Ibrahim. Additionally, ‘Abdullah Shariqi Malahi Qishta (28) was injured. Sabreen Shariqi Melahi Qishta (47) said to PCHR’s researcher that she has lost contact with her brother ‘Abdullah, who has been trapped in the Kherbet al-‘Adas neighborhood for three days, explaining that she had been in touch with him previously through phone calls and the internet.

 According to information available to our researcher, daily appeals are being made to evacuate civilians who remain trapped in Rafah’s neighborhoods, particularly in the northern areas, following the IOF’s ground invasion. At that time, many residents, especially the elderly, either refused to leave their houses or were unable to evacuate due to the ongoing bombardment and ground assault.

After the IOF’s repeated delays, on Saturday, 26 April 2025, the World Health Organization (WHO) successfully evacuated a family of 26 members, including 4 women, 7 children, and 2 injured, from Al-Orouba Street in al-Jinanah neighborhood in Rafah. They had been trapped in the area for the past few weeks.

According to our staff’s follow-up, during the evacuation of the family, the IOF arrested four of its members, including three siblings: Sharaf, Mohammed, and Mahmoud Sharif Khalil Al-Sheikh Khalil, and Alaa Mohammed Mosbah / Al-Sheikh Khalil, who is the wife of Mohammed Sharif Al-Sheikh Khalil. A few hours later, the IOF released Sharaf Sharif Khalil Al-Sheikh Khalil and Alaa Mohammed Mosbah / Al-Sheikh Khalil.   

The IOF also held the remaining family members for several hours and searched them before allowing them to be evacuated to the European Gaza Hospital in Khan Yunis.  They were 22 members, 20 of them were transported in a bus, while a woman, Naima Mousa Al-Halo (Al-Sheikh Khalil), and a child, Israa Sharif Al-Sheikh Khalil, were taken in an ambulance due to fractures they sustained when a house near theirs was bombed a few days earlier. The fractures of the two injured were stabilized using pieces of wood and wires.

Regarding their suffering under the siege, one of the survivors, Siham Ziyad Deeb Ashour / Al-Sheikh Khalil (33) told PCHR’s researcher:

“We were eating and drinking water in limited quantities to ensure it would not run out quickly. A few days ago, at dawn, Israeli warplanes bombed a house next to ours. The sound of the bombing and explosion was extremely violent, and the rubble scattered over our house, causing some of its walls to collapse. My uncle’s wife, Naima Mousa Al-Halo / Al-Sheikh Khalil, and her daughter Israa sustained fractures in their hands. We stabilized the fractures using pieces of wood and wires and gave them painkillers to alleviate the pain.”

Regarding the mistreatment they were exposed to during their evacuation, she stated:

“We left the house, and when we reached al-Mashrou’ intersection in al-Tanour neighborhood, close to our house, we stopped in front of a military checkpoint, where several Israeli tanks and a large number of soldiers were stationed. There were also quadcopter drones hovering above us. The soldiers ordered my uncle Sharif to step out of the bus, take off his clothes, and put them back on. Afterward, they ordered the other men to get off the bus, including my husband Sharaf and his brothers Mohammed and Mahmoud, take off their clothes and then put them back on. They forced them to kneel on the sidewalk with their faces towards the houses.  The soldiers then ordered the women and children to step out of the bus and stand next to them. They asked the women and children who were wearing jackets to take them off and throw them on the ground. Then, the children were allowed to board the bus first, followed by the women, except for my sister-in-law, Alaa Mohamed Musbah / Al-Sheikh Khalil, who is the wife of my brother-in-law Mohammed. They then allowed my uncle Sharif Khalil Sheikh Khalil to board the bus, while my husband Sharif and his brothers Mohammed and Mahmoud were prevented from doing so. The soldiers arrested them along with Alaa Mohamed Musbah / Al-Sheikh Khalil.  Stopping the bus, searching us, and the arrests took about two hours. There were 7 children with us, two of whom were infants, crying all the time during the search. The soldiers then allowed the bus, the ambulance, and the WHO vehicle to continue towards Salah al-Din Street, east of Rafah.”

Sharif Sheikh Khalil family is one of many families in Rafah that was unable to leave following the IOF’s evacuation orders issued at the end of March 2025. Due to their inability to evacuate, this family and others were forced to remain in Rafah even after the start of the IOF’s second ground assault on the city. They endured difficult conditions due to the constant bombardment around them, overwhelmed by fear and anxiety, knowing they could be targeted and killed at any moment. The children could not stop crying and screaming every time they heard the bombing and gunfire.

Throughout the siege, the family, like many others, endured hunger and the constant fear of Israeli bombing, while repeatedly making appeals via social media and phone calls for their evacuation from Rafah.

These incidents show that the IOF not only impose severe restrictions on civilians but also deliberately use humanitarian evacuations as a trap for arrests and further suffering. Additionally, the IOF have repeatedly hindered the evacuation of new civilians trapped in the city.

It is worth noting that the IOF continue their ground invasion into Rafah, completing its separation from Khan Yunis through the Morag axis, which was built on Palestinian-owned lands, stretching from western Rafah to its eastern side, with a depth ranging from 500 to 1000 meters, according to initial information. The IOF have also set up sand berms and military sites all along the axis’s sides.

In light of the above, PCHR condemns in the strongest terms these crimes and calls on the international community to take immediate action to protect the civilians trapped in Rafah, and to establish safe humanitarian corridors under international supervision to endure their unrestricted evacuation without fearing the risk of arrest.

PCHR emphasizes that silence towards these crimes is explicit complicity. The international community must rise to its responsibilities not merely under law, but towards the very essence of humanity. Immediate international action is urgently needed to end the systematic violations and crimes committed by IOF against the Palestinian people.

PCHR calls for immediate and serious measures to stop the ongoing crime of genocide and hold the Israeli perpetrators of these crimes accountable before international courts.  PCHR also urges the State Parties to the Genocide Convention to fulfil their legal and moral obligations and take urgent action to protect the Palestinian civilians from the mass killings and serious human rights violations.