Rafah Attack Threatens Main Artery in Gaza

Sources Two Egyptian officials and a Western diplomat stated on Sunday that "the fighting in Rafah could lead to the closure of the main route for aid to enter Gaza."

Egypt has warned of suspending the peace treaty with Israel if the Israeli army sends forces to the densely populated border city of Rafah in the Gaza Strip.

The Egyptian threat to suspend the peace treaty, which has been a cornerstone of regional stability in the area for nearly half a century, comes after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said sending forces to Rafah was "necessary to achieve victory" in the ongoing four-month war against Hamas.

More than half of Gaza's population - totaling 2.3 million people - fled to Rafah to escape the fighting in other areas, cramming into scattered camps and UN-run shelters near the border with Egypt.

The Egyptian government fears a mass influx of hundreds of thousands of Palestinian refugees, whom Israel may never allow to return.