FLASH
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has insisted that military troops will advance on the Gaza city of Rafah, defying international warnings.
French President Emmanuel Macron also warned Netanyahu, telling him that the human cost of Israel's operation in Gaza would be "intolerable".
About 1.4 million Palestinians have taken refuge in Rafah, which is already under bombardment. Netanyahu vowed to press ahead with a "powerful" offensive, declaring that Hamas, the group that controls Gaza, must be eliminated from the southern city.
"We will fight until complete victory and this includes a strong action in Rafah as well after allowing the civilian population to leave the battle zones ," he said.
President Macron called Netanyahu on Wednesday, asking him to halt operations in Gaza. He expressed France's firm opposition to an Israeli offensive in Rafah, which could only lead to a humanitarian disaster of new proportions.
The prime ministers of Australia, Canada and New Zealand issued a joint statement expressing their grave concern that a military operation in Rafah would be "catastrophic".
"We call on the Israeli government not to follow this path ," the statement said, adding that the impact on Palestinian civilians from an expanded military operation would be devastating.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock, during her visit to Israel, warned that people in Rafah who have nowhere to go cannot "just vanish into thin air".
Spain and the Republic of Ireland have asked the EU, of which they are members, to review "urgently" whether Israel is complying with its human rights obligations in Gaza.
The health ministry in the Hamas-run Palestinian territory reports that at least 28,576 people, mostly women and children, have been killed as a result of Israel's offensive in Gaza.
Israel took action after gunmen led by Hamas killed at least 1,200 people and took 253 hostages in a surprise attack on its territory on October 7.
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