By Ahmed Asmar

ANKARA (AA) - Qatar on Wednesday strongly condemned the Israeli army's bombing of the Rafah municipality, urging for international action to stop Israel's invasion of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip.

In a statement, the Qatari Foreign Ministry urged for "an urgent international action to prevent the invasion of the (Rafah) city and the commitment of a genocide and to provide full protection for civilians."

It also warned that forcibly displacing civilians from Rafah "constitutes a serious violation of international laws and would double the worsening humanitarian crisis in the besieged Strip."

The Israeli army on Tuesday started its invasion into the eastern area of Rafah under which the Israeli army stormed and occupied the Palestinian side of the Rafah crossing with Egypt, closing Gazan Palestinians' only gateway with the world.

On Monday, Israeli forces issued evacuation orders for Palestinians in eastern Rafah in a move widely seen as a prelude to Israel's long-feared attack on the city, which is home to some 1.5 million displaced Palestinians.

Israel has pounded the Gaza Strip in retaliation for an Oct. 7 attack by Hamas which killed about 1,200 people. Nearly 34,800 Palestinians have since been killed in Gaza, the vast majority of whom have been women and children, and 78,100 others injured, according to Palestinian health authorities.

Seven months into the Israeli war, vast swathes of Gaza lay in ruins, pushing 85% of the enclave’s population into internal displacement amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water, and medicine, according to the UN.

Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January said it is "plausible" that Israel is committing genocide in Gaza and ordered Tel Aviv to stop such acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.