Netanyahu calls Rafah strike ‘tragic mistake’ amid global outcry

Israel’s Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday called the country’s deadly weekend strike on a Rafah displacement camp a “tragic mistake,” as global outrage over the number of civilians killed in its war in Gaza mounted.

According to the Gaza Health Ministry, Sunday night’s strike killed at least 45 Palestinians and wounded almost 200 others taking shelter in tents for displaced people in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, where roughly 1 million Palestinians have sought refuge during Israel’s military offensive. Many have fled the area since the start of Israel’s ground invasion of the city three weeks ago, though hundreds of thousands are estimated to still remain.

In a speech to Israel’s parliament on Monday, Netanyahu said that Israel would investigate Sunday’s “incident” and “obtain a conclusion.”

“Despite our utmost efforts not to harm innocent civilians, last night, there was a tragic mistake,” Netanyahu said. “We are investigating the incident and will obtain a conclusion because this is our policy.”

Shortly after the attack, the Israel Defense Forces announced that two senior Hamas officials had been killed in a strike carried out “on the basis of precise intelligence,” though the IDF also acknowledged reports that “several civilians in the area were harmed.”

The National Security Council appeared to support Israel’s statement that the strike killed two top Hamas operatives. A NSC spokesperson, granted anonymity to discuss a sensitive issue, added that the U.S. is “actively engaging” the IDF to assess the attack.

“The devastating images following an IDF strike in Rafah last night that killed dozens of innocent Palestinians are heartbreaking. Israel has a right to go after Hamas, and we understand this strike killed two senior Hamas terrorists who are responsible for attacks against Israeli civilians,” the spokesperson said. “But as we’ve been clear, Israel must take every precaution possible to protect civilians.”

Doctors Without Borders said it had treated 180 injured people with shrapnel wounds, fractures, traumatic injuries and burns.

“Women and children were among the people that were brought to the stabilization point, and once again, civilians are paying the price of this war,” Samuel Johann, the organization’s Gaza coordinator, said in a statement. “This Israeli attack on a populated camp in a so-called ‘safe zone’ in Rafah shows the complete disregard for the lives of civilians in Gaza.”

Democratic lawmakers, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), lambasted Israel over the attack.

“The Israeli bombing of a refugee camp inside a designated safe zone is horrific. Israel has a duty to protect innocent civilians and Palestinians seeking shelter in Rafah have nowhere safe to go,” Warren posted to X, formerly known as Twitter. “Netanyahu’s assault of Rafah must stop. We need an immediate cease-fire.”

Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) added: “Netanayhu’s reckless prosecution of Hamas has killed Israeli hostages, aid workers, and innocent Palestinians. And nothing changes. The same tactics by the same leaders will only produce same or worse results.”

Top EU officials were also quick to condemn the strike, with French President Emmanuel Macron expressing “outrage” over the civilian deaths and demanding “full respect for international law and an immediate ceasefire.”

In an unusual rebuke, the German Foreign Office posted a similar message to X.

“The images of charred bodies, including children, from the airstrike in Rafah are unbearable,” the statement said. “The exact circumstances must be clarified and an IDF investigation launched swiftly. The civilian population in Gaza must urgently be better protected.”

United Nations Human Rights Chief Volker Türk echoed the call for an investigation, saying the outcome of the strike was “entirely predictable” and noting that the IDF’s review must “lead to accountability and changes in policy and practices.”

“The images from the camp are horrific and point to no apparent change in the methods and means of warfare used by Israel that have already led to so many civilian deaths,” said Türk. “Sunday’s strike underscores once again that there is literally no safe place in Gaza.”

The strike comes just days after the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel must halt its offensive in Rafah — an order that, while legally binding, the court has no power to enforce.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) invoked the ICJ ruling in a post denouncing Israel's strike and calling on President Joe Biden — who previously said an Israeli incursion into Rafah would be a "red line" — to terminate military aid to Israel.

"The IDF’s attack on a tent camp of innocents in Rafah is an indefensible atrocity. This was done in open defiance of @POTUS’s red line and the ICJ’s call for a ceasefire," Ocasio-Cortez wrote. "It is long past time for the President to live up to his word and suspend military aid."

Nahal Toosi and Erin Banco contributed to this report.