This picture taken from Rafah shows smoke billowing over Khan Yunis in the distance following Israeli bombardment on the southern Gaza Strip on Feb 14, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

GENEVA/UN/JERUSALEM/RAMALLAH/PARIS/BEIRUT - The World Health Organization (WHO) on Wednesday warned of an "unfathomable catastrophe" that the potential expansion of Israeli ground assault could cause in Rafah, a city in the southern Gaza Strip.

Speaking to a virtual press briefing from Rafah, Richard Peeperkorn, WHO representative in the occupied Palestinian territory, said 1.5 million people crammed into the city with nowhere safe to go, sparking a new wave of displacement and additional injuries.

That could have "dire consequences" on people's health and push the already ailing health system closer to the brink of collapse, Peeperkorn said.

There are only three partially functional hospitals in Rafah, supplemented by three field hospitals, offering just 450 beds that pale in comparison to actual needs, the WHO representative said.

Also on Wednesday, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, the United Nations special adviser on the prevention of genocide, voiced grave concerns over the potential "disastrous consequences" for civilians in Rafah due to reported plans for a full military incursion

The International Committee of the Red Cross also made similar comments on the devastating conditions of Rafah on Wednesday. "There is a lack of food, drinking water, sanitation, health care, and safety," it said.

READ MORE: Israeli operations in Rafah could lead to slaughter, UN warns

"Coupled with constant stress and fear, and taking into account injuries, age, and disabilities, many residents are in a weakened state and at elevated risk of dying from common infections or diseases," the humanitarian organization added.

From November to Feb 9, around 40 percent of WHO missions have made it to north Gaza, whereas 45 percent have been facilitated to the south. The rest have been denied, impeded or postponed, Peeperkorn lamented.

The health agency called for sustained humanitarian corridors to continue providing vital aid, even if an immediate ceasefire is not reached.

Displaced Palestinians stand outside their tents in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip on Feb 14, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

Also on Wednesday, Alice Wairimu Nderitu, the United Nations special adviser on the prevention of genocide, voiced grave concerns over the potential "disastrous consequences" for civilians in Rafah due to reported plans for a full military incursion.

READ MORE: Gaza: At least 25 killed in Israeli bombing on Rafah city

"It is imperative that the protection of civilians is prioritized and that international humanitarian law is respected at all times," Nderitu said. 

"The risk of commission of atrocity crimes should a full military incursion into Rafah take place, is serious, real and high," she added.

The special adviser also called for immediate action to alleviate the suffering of the vulnerable populations in Rafah and the Gaza Strip, and underscored the need for "releasing all hostages unconditionally".

Israel ‘did not receive’ any new proposals 

Israel said it did not receive any new proposals from Hamas for the ceasefire and hostage-release deal at the Cairo meeting attended by Qatari, Egyptian, and US negotiators.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu "insists that Israel will not yield to Hamas' outrageous demands" and that "a change in Hamas' positions will allow progress in negotiations", his office said in a statement.

READ MORE: Report: Israel frees 2 hostages, over 100 killed in Gaza's Rafah

Earlier on Wednesday, media reports quoting American officials said that no breakthrough was achieved, but progress was made at the talks.

Israeli tanks roll near the border with the Gaza Strip on Feb 14, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

French President Emmanuel Macron has called for the release of all hostages including three French and a ceasefire in Gaza without further delay, to protect civilians and facilitate the massive entry of emergency aid

Meanwhile, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas on Wednesday urged Hamas to finalize a prisoner swap deal with Israel soon, as he warned of a looming Israeli assault on the Gaza Strip that could cause more humanitarian disasters.

Abbas said the deal was needed to "prevent the Israeli aggression on Rafah, which will result in thousands of casualties, suffering and displacement for our people," the official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

He appealed to the United States and Arab countries to help expedite the deal and spare the Palestinians from "the scourge of this destructive war".

ALSO READ: Israeli forces rescue 2 hostages in Rafah, kill 67 Palestinians

In Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron has called for the release of all hostages including three French and a ceasefire in Gaza without further delay, to protect civilians and facilitate the massive entry of emergency aid.

Macron made these remarks during a telephone conversation with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday, according to a statement released by the French presidency.

"The head of state also stressed the urgency of delivering massive humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. To do this, it was imperative to open the port of Ashdod (coastal city of Israel), a direct overland route from Jordan and all the crossing points," the statement said.

ALSO READ: Palestinian presidency condemns Netanyahu's plans in Rafah

Macron reiterated France's condemnation of Israel's settlement policy and called for dismantling the illegal outposts, and stressed that only a two-state solution could meet the security needs of Israel and its people, and meet the legitimate aspirations of the Palestinians to establish a state. 

Smoke billows following Israeli bombardment in the village of Shihin in southern Lebanon near the border with Israel on Feb 13, 2024. (PHOTO / AFP)

5 killed by Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon

Five people were killed and six others were injured Wednesday night in two Israeli airstrikes on Lebanon's southern border areas, Lebanese medical and security sources said.

The sources said that an Israeli drone destroyed, with two air-to-surface missiles, a residential apartment within a three-story building on the eastern side of Lebanon's southern city of Nabatieh.

ALSO READ: 1 dead, 7 injured in Lebanon rocket attack on north Israel

The sources noted that initial information from rescue teams indicated that four people were killed and six others were injured in the drone attack, adding search was underway for missing persons while rescuers continued to clear the debris.

Meanwhile, a house in the southeastern village of Deir Siriane was hit by two missiles fired by an Israeli warplane, which resulted in its destruction and the death of the occupant.

Earlier in the day, five people were killed and 11 others were wounded in Israeli airstrikes on the southeastern villages of Aadchit and al-Sawaneh.