ISTANBUL 

The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) said on Tuesday that as of Sunday almost all displaced people have left the southern Gaza city of Rafah.

“They have been forced to vacate all UNRWA shelters there,” said the agency on X.

For months, Israel had encouraged Palestinian refugees to go to Rafah, touting it as a "safe zone," and over a million took refuge there. But in May, ignorning international warnings of a humanitarian crisis, it launched an offensive into Rafah, galvanizing an exodus from the city.

Living conditions in Gaza in general are “unspeakable," it said, adding that according to the UN humanitarian affairs office over 96% of women and children aged 6 to 23 months lack access to their fundamental nutritional necessities.

Since Oct. 7, 2023 more than 37,100 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza, most of them women and children, and vast tracts of the territory lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine.

Israel also stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered Tel Aviv to immediately halt its operation in Rafah.