据哈马斯控制的加沙卫生部称，美国国务院周二对以色列周日在加沙南部城市拉法的空袭表示“深切关注”，此次空袭导致流离失所的巴勒斯坦人居住的帐篷营地起火，据报道造成50人死亡，249人受伤。
美国国务院发言人马修·米勒(Matthew Miller)在周二的新闻发布会上说:“美国一看到有关这一事件的报道，就立即联系以色列政府，对所发生的事情表示深切关注，要求提供更多信息，并敦促他们进行全面调查。”他说，作为回应，以色列政府承诺进行更广泛的审查，审查将“迅速、全面和透明”，美国将“密切关注这些结果”。
总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡周一表示，这起事件是一次“悲剧性的灾难”
美国官员告诉美国广播公司新闻，他们收到以色列官员的信息，他们认为袭击可能点燃了离帐篷营地约100米远的附近一个储油罐，或不到330英尺。
白宫国家安全委员会发言人周一表示，拉法传出的“毁灭性图像”令人“心碎”。这位发言人还坚持白宫的立场，即虽然以色列“有权追捕”哈马斯，但也必须保护平民。
根据哈马斯运营的加沙卫生部的数据，在周日的袭击之前，自哈马斯10月7日对以色列发动意外恐怖袭击以来，加沙已有超过35，709人死亡，超过79，990人受伤。据以色列官员称，已有1700多名以色列人丧生，8700人受伤。
美国广播公司新闻记者布里特·克莱因特在以色列特拉维夫报道说，他们亲眼目睹了邻居被活活烧死。她和“从这里开始”关于空袭及其后果的发展。
从这里开始:布里特，这里发生了什么?
克莱因特:所以我们看到了那些画面——我们可以听到恐怖的尖叫声，以及看起来像燃烧的地狱。周日晚上，在以色列袭击真正吞没了拉法西部的一个难民营后，出现了可怕、疯狂的时刻。人们不顾一切地试图扑灭火焰，并从大火中救出所有可能的人。许多人因严重烧伤和弹片受伤而接受治疗。有烧焦和肢解尸体的图像，你知道，这些图像引起了全球领导人的强烈抗议。
从这里开始:但是布里特，罢工是什么?它的意图是什么?这是针对一个平民社区，还是发生了什么?
克莱因特:以色列国防军表示，这是一次针对哈马斯高级武装分子的精确打击，似乎引发了大火，火势在帐篷和临时住所中迅速蔓延。在这场混乱之后，以色列官员花了大量时间调查拉法到底出了什么问题。你知道，许多人在问，这种精确打击是如何使用减少弹头的专门弹药导致数十人死亡和数十人受伤的大火风暴的?随后，我们听取了以色列总理本雅明·内塔尼亚胡的发言，他表示周日的袭击是一次悲剧性的事故，以色列正在对事故原因进行调查。
从这里开始:反应如何?因为这似乎也是故事的一部分，对吗?不仅来自加沙，而且来自世界各地的反应。
CLENNETT:有很多援助组织排队谴责这次罢工。以色列政府因加沙战争面临前所未有的外交压力，同时还要应对国内要求其释放人质的压力。现在，这次袭击是我们在加沙最南端的城市拉法看到的最致命的袭击之一。就在两天前，海牙国际法院下令以色列立即停止在拉法的行动。海牙国际法院负责各国之间的仲裁。所以一些援助组织说，好吧，这是一记耳光。我们从联合国人权事务负责人那里获悉，此次袭击表明以色列使用的已经导致大量平民死亡的作战方法和手段没有明显改变。因此，预计这将具有很大的地缘政治影响，它加剧了我们在世界舞台上看到的以色列日益孤立的局面。
从这里开始:这让我想到了美国的反应，因为拜登总统曾谈到向平民区开火的后果。这对美国来说是否已经跨过了一个门槛?
克莱因特:拉法一直是一个主要的症结。现在，我们从国家安全委员会发言人那里听到，他称拉法的图像是毁灭性的和令人心碎的，并补充说，以色列必须保护平民，尽管仍坚持白宫的立场，即以色列有权追捕哈马斯。我们知道白宫已经说过，以色列有权自卫和保护其平民。然而，面对越来越多的谴责，以及美国是加沙所用武器的供应商这一事实，所有这些都给拜登造成了很大的压力。
从这里开始:我们能在这里谈论拉法更广阔的视野吗?现在人口有多少?因为我知道以色列已经发布了撤离命令，你知道，离开拉法。这里不再安全了。但是安全移动似乎很困难。似乎人们不清楚在其他地方等待他们的是什么。但如果你真的留在那里，是否会有更多这样的事情发生?
克莱因特:所以在人们开始四处迁移之前，拉法的人口约为140万。联合国表示，约占拉法人口一半的80万人已经撤离。我一听到这些袭击的消息，就和一个从战争开始就一直与之交谈的家庭进行了交谈。他们已经搬了五次家，现在他们在拉法西部。他们说他们能听到救护车的声音，能听到爆炸声。所以我认为重要的是，你知道，提醒我们这些是有真实故事、真实生活的真实的人。
当我问这家人，“你会离开吗?”他们说，我们还没有收到以色列国防军的指令。但毫无疑问，所有这些罢工给他们带来了如此多的恐惧，以至于他们在考虑是否应该再次打包行李离开。问题是，当援助组织说加沙现在没有安全的地方时，你去哪里了?
Israeli government facing increased condemnation, diplomatic pressure over latest Rafah air strikes
The U.S. State Department on Tuesday expressed its "deep concern" over Israeli air strikes Sunday in the southern Gaza city of Rafah that set fire to a tent camp that housed displaced Palestinians, reportedly causing 50 deaths and injuring 249 others, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health.
"As soon as the United States saw reports of this incident, we reached out to the government of Israel to express our deep concern over what happened, ask for more information and urge them to undertake a full investigation,” State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller said during his press briefing Tuesday. He said in response, the Israeli government had promised a more extensive review that would be “swift, comprehensive and transparent,” and that the U.S. would be “watching those results closely.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said that the incident was a "tragic mishap."
U.S. officials told ABC News that they've received information from Israeli officials that they believe the strike may have ignited a nearby fuel storage tank some 100 meters away from the tent camp, or just under 330 feet.
A White House National Security Council spokesperson on Monday said that the "devastating images" coming out of Rafah are "heartbreaking." The spokesperson also maintained the White House's position that while Israel "has a right to go after" Hamas, it also must protect civilians.
Prior to Sunday's attack, more than 35,709 people in Gaza had been killed and more than 79,990 injured since Hamas' surprise Oct. 7 terrorist attack on Israel, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Ministry of Health. More than 1,700 Israelis have been killed and 8,700 have been injured, according to Israeli officials.
ABC News' Britt Clennett, in Tel Aviv, Israel, heard from people who said they essentially watched their neighbors being burned alive. She spoke with"Start Here"about the air strikes, and developments in their aftermath.
START HERE: Britt, what happened here?
CLENNETT: So we saw those images – screams of horror we could hear and what looked like a burning inferno. The frightful, frantic moments just after Israeli strikes really engulfed a refugee camp in western Rafah on Sunday night. There were desperate attempts to put out the flames and pull out anyone that they could from the blaze. Many people treated with severe burns and shrapnel injuries. There were images of charred and dismembered bodies, you know, and these are the images prompting an outcry now from global leaders.
START HERE: But Britt, what was the strike? What was the intent of it? Was this focused on a civilian community, or what happened?
CLENNETT: So the IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) said that this was a bombing that targeted senior Hamas militants in a precision strike, which really appears to have ignited fires that spread very quickly through those tents and makeshift accommodation. Israeli officials have now spent much of the time in the aftermath of this scrambling to find out what went wrong in Rafah. You know, how did this precision strike, many people are asking, using specialized munitions with reduced warheads, you know, result in a firestorm which killed dozens and injured scores more? Then we heard from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who said the strike on Sunday was a tragic mishap and that the Israelis are carrying out an investigation into what went wrong.
START HERE: What was the reaction? Because that also seems like part of the story as well, right? Reaction not just from Gaza but from around the world.
CLENNETT: There are a lot of aid groups lining up to condemn this strike. Israel's government is facing diplomatic pressure on unprecedented levels over its war in Gaza, while also dealing with pressure at home to return the hostages. Now, this strike – one of the deadliest we've seen in Rafah, the southernmost city in Gaza – it came just two days after the International Court of Justice in The Hague, which arbitrates between states, ordered Israel to stop its operation in Rafah immediately. So some aid groups are saying, well, this is a slap in the face. And we've heard from the U.N.'s human rights chief, who said the attack suggested that there had been no apparent change in the methods and the means of warfare used by Israel that have already led to so many civilian deaths. So this is expected to have a lot of geopolitical weight, and it adds to this growing isolation that we're seeing of Israel on the world stage.
START HERE: That makes me think of the U.S. response, because President Biden had talked about the consequences of firing on civilian areas. Does this cross a threshold for the U.S. now?
CLENNETT: Rafah has always been a major sticking point. Now, we have heard from the National Security Council spokesperson calling the images out of Rafah devastating and heartbreaking, adding that Israel must protect civilians, though maintaining the White House position that Israel has a right to go after Hamas. We know that that is something that the white House has said, that Israel has a right to self-defend and to defend its civilians. However, in the face of growing condemnation and the fact that the U.S. is a supplier of arms which are used in Gaza, this all combined creates a lot of pressure for Biden.
START HERE: Can we talk about the wider view of Rafah here? How populated is it even right now? Because I know Israel had issued evacuation orders to, you know, get out of Rafah. It's not safe here anymore. But it seems so difficult to move safely. It seems like people are unclear what awaits them anywhere else. But if you do stay there, does it seem like more of this is going to be on the way?
CLENNETT: So the population of Rafah was about 1.4 million before people started to move around. The U.N. said 800,000 people, about half of the Rafah population, had evacuated. As soon as I heard about these strikes, I spoke to a family who I have been speaking to since the start of this war. They've moved five times, and now they're in western Rafah. They said that they could hear the ambulances, that they could hear the explosions. And so I think it was important that, you know, we are reminded that these are real people with real stories, with real lives.
And when I asked this family, you know, "Are you going to leave?" They said, well, we haven't had the directive from the IDF yet. But certainly, all these strikes are creating so much fear for them that they're wondering whether they should just pack their bags again and go. The question is, where do you go when aid groups are saying nowhere is safe in Gaza right now?
