The Rafah border crossing has reopened for the limited number of Egyptians and foreign nationals with permission to cross into Egypt to escape Israel’s assault on the enclave, Hamas-controlled authorities in Gaza have said.
More than 100 British nationals have left Gaza via the border crossing in recent days, prime minister Rishi Sunak has said, where the United Nations says some 3,900 children have been killed since Hamas’s shock incursion into Israel sparked the conflict last month.
It came as the US sent a nuclear submarine to the Middle East, in an unusual announcement viewed by some analysts as a message to Iran, which backs Hamas. It came as Israel’s military hailed a “significant” move after encircling Gaza City, dividing the besieged coastal strip into two.
“Today there is north Gaza and south Gaza,” Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari told reporters, calling it a “significant stage” in Israel’s war against the Hamas militant group in the enclave.
The move sets the stage for Israeli troops to enter the city in the coming hours and days, raising the prospect of street fighting with Hamas.
