Gaza truce talks end inconclusively as Rafah braces for Israeli assault

With Palestinians in Rafah 'staring death in the face,' United Nations aid chief Martin Griffiths said an Israeli ground invasion there would make humanitarian relief nearly impossible

Palestinians inspect the rubble of the Hasouna family house, which was struck by an Israeli airstrike during an operation to rescue two hostages in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, Tuesday, Feb. 13, 2024. Ibrahim Hasouna, who was away at the time of the airstrike, says his entire family was killed, including his parents, two brothers, his sister-in-law and three nieces and nephews. (AP Photo/Fatima Shbair)

Talks involving the US, Egypt, Israel and Qatar on a Gaza truce ended without a breakthrough on Tuesday as calls grew for Israel to hold back on a planned assault on the southern end of the enclave, crammed with over a million displaced people.

The city of Rafah, whose pre-war population was about 300,000, teems with homeless people living in tent camps and makeshift shelters who fled there from Israeli bombardments in areas of Gaza farther north during more than four months of war.