The past few days have witnessed a noticeable increase in warnings from multiple sources about the consequences and danger of the Israeli occupation forces storming the besieged city of Rafah, which is crowded with about 1.4 million Palestinians, most of whom are displaced people who went to the city in response to the instructions of the Israeli occupation authorities themselves after those forces destroyed most of the Gaza Strip, as international organizations, human rights advocates and even a growing number of Western leaders urge Israel to refrain from launching a large-scale ground assault on the crowded city.

The White House said in a statement Thursday that President Joe Biden spoke (Thursday) with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, and discussed with him the ongoing negotiations regarding the hostages.

The statement, a copy of which was received by Jerusalem, said: “The President reaffirmed his commitment to work tirelessly to support the release of all hostages as quickly as possible, recognizing their horrific situation after 132 days in Hamas captivity. The President and Prime Minister also discussed the situation in Gaza, and the urgent need to ensure Humanitarian aid reaches Palestinian civilians who are in dire need of it.”

According to the statement, “President (Biden) raised the situation in Rafah and reiterated his view that the military operation should not continue without a credible and implementable plan to ensure the safety and support of civilians in Rafah,” noting that such a concrete plan, at present, does not exist: Talk of “safe zones” along the coast in an area known as Al-Mawasi has proven to be mostly theoretical, with civilians languishing in squalid conditions without reliable access to shelter or food.

In a phone call on Wednesday with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, French President Emmanuel Macron said Israel risked a “humanitarian catastrophe of a new magnitude.” A joint statement by the leaders of Australia, Canada and New Zealand said that "the military operation in Rafah would be disastrous" and called on Israel to "listen to its friends." The prime ministers of Spain and Ireland wrote to the authorities in Brussels, suggesting that Israel may be violating the Association Agreement with the European Union and demanding an “urgent review.”

United Nations officials said that the possibility of flagrant violations of international law and possible war crimes is rising in the Israeli war on Gaza, which has so far caused the death of at least 28,000 Palestinian citizens, most of them women and children, and the destruction of a large portion of Gaza’s civilian infrastructure. Alice Wairimu Nderitu, the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide, said in a statement that “the risk of atrocity crimes being committed in the event of a full military incursion into Rafah is serious, real and high.”

In turn, Martin Griffiths, the United Nations' chief humanitarian affairs official, said that the possibility of an Israeli ground attack puts the international organization's relief operations at "death's door" and could lead to a massacre of civilians. He added, "The international community warns of the dangerous consequences of any ground invasion in Rafah," and that "the Israeli government cannot continue to ignore these calls, as history will not be kind."

For its part, Egypt has reportedly fortified its border with Gaza and does not want to see a million Palestinian refugees flocking in — because of its security concerns, but also because of long-standing Arab fears that this would facilitate the forced displacement and ethnic cleansing of Palestinians from Gaza at the hands of Israel. (The Washington Post published Thursday that satellite images show that Egypt has cleared and erected a concrete wall around a large plot of land along the border, raising speculation that this may be the site of a possible refugee camp.)

The newspaper quotes a former Egyptian official as saying: “If tens of thousands of Palestinians cross the border as a result of the attacks [in Rafah], do you think the Egyptian army will shoot them? The answer is no.” "Any responsible government has to think: Well, if we have the worst-case scenario, how are we going to deal with that?"

The American, Arab and Israeli interlocutors are still debating over a possible agreement with Hamas that could see at least a temporary cessation of fighting and the release of Israeli hostages still being held by the movement. Netanyahu has dashed the possibility of achieving a diplomatic breakthrough, saying that Hamas’ demands are “fake” and vowing to eliminate the movement.

Netanyahu said on Wednesday: “We will fight until complete victory, and this includes strong action also in Rafah after we allow the civilian population to leave the combat areas.”

Some experts believe there is speculation that "Netanyahu's threats against Rafah are a diplomatic ploy aimed at pressuring Hamas to accept the deal." The departure of the Israeli negotiating team from the talks in Cairo on Tuesday angered the families of the hostages inside Israel. Small protests against Netanyahu and his war government took place throughout the week, according to Israeli media, which also said that Netanyahu frustrated the White House by refusing to enter into serious discussions about the post-war scenario.

It is noteworthy that several American sources spoke this week about the Biden administration’s vision, with implicit support from a number of influential Arab governments, for a major deal that would provide for the reconstruction of Gaza, revive the political path to establish a Palestinian state, and Israel’s deeper integration into the region.

But there are doubts whether Israel will accept such a deal, and whether its government will acquiesce to much of what is being discussed: the dismantling of many, if not all, of the settlements in the occupied West Bank; Establishment of a Palestinian capital in East Jerusalem; and the reconstruction of Gaza; and security and governance arrangements for the West Bank and Gaza combined, knowing that the hope that Israel will also obtain specific security guarantees and normalization with Saudi Arabia and other Arab countries may be difficult to reject.

It is noteworthy that Netanyahu's office responded on Wednesday, rejecting any talk about such an agreement, as Netanyahu has always opposed the establishment of a sovereign Palestinian state alongside Israel.

Serious analysts, including a member of Netanyahu's war cabinet, believe that Israel will never be able to completely eliminate Hamas. But it is causing untold harm to civilians and sparking a humanitarian crisis unprecedented in scope and speed. Critics also blame the Biden administration, which is unwilling to use its influence to rein in Netanyahu.