Fighting In Rafah Keeps Aid Crossings Closed, Sends 110,000 Civilians Fleeing

RAFAH, Gaza Strip (AP) — The U.N. says heavy fighting between Israeli troops and Palestinian militants in the southern Gaza city of Rafah has left crucial nearby aid crossings inaccessible and caused over 110,000 people to flee north. A U.N. official says the World Food Program will run out of food for distribution in southern Gaza by Saturday. The United States is deeply opposed to Israel’s plans for a full-scale invasion of Rafah and is stepping up pressure by threatening to withhold arms to Israel. But even a more limited incursion earlier this week could worsen Gaza’s humanitarian catastrophe. Heavy fighting was underway Friday in northern Gaza, where Hamas appears to have again regrouped in an area where Israel had already launched punishing assaults.