News - Middle East: Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has warned that Israel's plan to launch a ground assault against the city of Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip could lead to "ethnic cleansing" of the Palestinians.

Speaking at a news conference on the sidelines of the Antalya Diplomacy Forum in Turkey on Saturday, Lavrov voiced Moscow's concern over Israeli plans to conduct a military offensive in Rafah, where two-thirds of the Palestinians in Gaza are seeking shelter from violence.
"If the operation of Rafah begins, a huge number of refugees will leave for Egypt, and the Egyptians have repeatedly stated that this is unacceptable. This will be ethnic cleansing in fact," he said.
"A real tragedy is taking place in Gaza, which has no end in sight," he added.
Rafah, a town along the Egyptian border, which was once declared a “safe zone” by the Israeli military, has now become the last refuge for over half of Gaza’s entire population of more than 2.3 million, who have fled their homes in other parts of the territory.
Egypt has already threatened to suspend its peace treaty with Israel if the regime sends its troops to Rafah. It said any ground invasion could force the closure of the besieged territory’s main aid supply route.
United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also warned on Monday that such an invasion would “put the final nail in the coffin” of aid operations in Gaza.