Egypt has firmly rejected what it characterizes as a "policy of distorting facts and evading responsibility" attributed to Israel. The Egyptian government emphasizes that Israel bears sole responsibility for the humanitarian crisis affecting the Palestinian population in the Gaza Strip. Responding to the Israeli Foreign Minister's call for the reopening of the Rafah crossing and attributing the responsibility for averting a humanitarian crisis in Gaza to Egypt, Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry highlighted that Israeli control over the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing, coupled with military operations in the area, poses significant risks to relief workers and truck drivers, leading to challenges in delivering aid through the crossing. Minister Shoukry criticized the Israeli government's efforts to assign blame to Egypt for the severe humanitarian situation in Gaza, stating it is "a direct consequence of ongoing Israeli military actions against Palestinians over the past seven months, resulting in the loss of over 35,000 lives, predominantly women and children." He urged Israel to fulfil its responsibilities as the occupying power by facilitating the entry of humanitarian aid through other land crossings under its jurisdiction to the encircled Gaza Strip. Furthermore, the International Court of Justice announced that it will convene hearings on Thursday and Friday to deliberate on a recent petition filed by South Africa. The petition, submitted last Friday, seeks an immediate court order mandating additional protective measures for Palestinians in Gaza following the Israeli incursion into Rafah. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health in Gaza announced on Tuesday that the Israeli occupation army committed eight massacres against families in the Gaza Strip, of which 82 dead and 234 wounded were brought to hospitals during the past 24 hours. The ministry added in its daily report that there are still several victims under the rubble and on the roads that ambulance and civil defence teams cannot reach, which raises the toll of the Israeli aggression on Gaza to 35,173 dead and 79,061 wounded since 7 October. On the ground, the Israeli occupation army announced that 28 soldiers were injured in the battles taking place in the Gaza Strip during the past hours, some of them seriously: The Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced that it had carried out a complex operation by targeting a "Merkava tank with an Al-Yassin 105 shell, killing and wounding its crew, and then killing 7 soldiers who were behind the targeted vehicle from zero distance east of the Jabalia camp, north of Gaza strip". The Al-Qassam Brigades said that its members blew up a house that had been previously booby-trapped by an Israeli special force, leaving its members dead and wounded on George Street, east of Rafah. Moreover, the Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Jihad Movement, also announced the downing of an Evo Max drone in eastern Khan Yunis and added that it had taken control of the aircraft.
