GAZA CITY, Palestine

A Palestinian official in Gaza told Anadolu on Wednesday that the number of displaced people who arrived in Rafah in the southernmost part of the Gaza Strip is about 1 million since the beginning of an Israeli offensive on Oct. 7. 

“The total number of people present in the city of Rafah at the moment is not less than 1.3 million, with the city's population being around 300,000,” said Ahmed al-Soufi, the head of Rafah municipality.

He said the number in shelters belonging to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency, or UNRWA, is about 713,000, including those displaced outside the premises of the centers but registered with the UN agency. 

Al-Soufi pointed out that out of the total number of people in the city, there are about 268,000 in public squares and streets.

Since the beginning of the Israeli war, hundreds of thousands of Palestinians fleeing Israeli airstrikes in Gaza City have headed to Rafah.

The influx of residents from the central and Khan Younis areas continues, amid warnings from the army for them to evacuate immediately.

Although the Israeli army classifies areas in the southern Gaza Strip, including Rafah, as “safe" zones, those areas have witnessed intense airstrikes targeting inhabited homes, resulting in fatalities and injuries.  

*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala