Stephen urges Prime Minister to act over Rafah
Stephen has written to the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, asking him to contact his Israeli counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, and ask him to reconsider plans to advance his troops on the Gazan city of Rafah.
Rafah is Gaza's southern-most and features a crossing point into Egypt where humanitarian aid has been allowed to enter the Gaza Strip. Some 1.4 million Palestinians are sheltering in the city, which has already come under bombardment. Now Israeli authorities want civilians to relocate to what they call a "humanitarian zone" - a thin strip of mainly agricultural land along the Mediterranean coast known as al-Mawasi.
Speaking about the letter, Stephen said: “Many of those currently in Rafah are desperate and hungry. I am deeply concerned by the proposed invasion. Israel has already killed too many civilians, placed unacceptable blocks on essential aid, and caused a growing humanitarian catastrophe.
“The Prime Minister must now act.”