2023-11-08 10:26:41
During its advance in the north of the Gaza Strip, Israel’s military said it was concentrating on destroying the extensive tunnel network of the radical Islamic Palestinian group Hamas on Wednesday. Special forces used explosive devices to neutralize the network of tunnels that stretched hundreds of kilometers under the Gaza Strip, explained military spokesman Daniel Hagari. One of Hamas’ leading weapons developers was killed, the army said.
According to the information, Mahsein Abu Zina was, among other things, an expert in the development of missiles. The Islamist organization ruling in the Gaza Strip repeatedly fires these at Israeli areas. On Wednesday night, Israeli forces said they killed several terrorists in the Gaza Strip. They wanted to fire anti-tank missiles at the soldiers. Another group was reportedly responsible for rocket fire on Israel. Several people were also killed in the air attack on this terrorist cell.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Israel has “one target – the Hamas terrorists in Gaza, their infrastructure, their commanders, bunkers, communication rooms.” This marked the beginning of the next phase of the Israeli offensive. A month following the Hamas attack, Israel said it advanced into the center of Gaza City with ground troops on Tuesday. Gaza City, Hamas’ most important stronghold in the coastal area, is encircled and the Gaza Strip is effectively divided into a northern and a southern half.
Hamas said its fighters had inflicted heavy losses on Israeli troops. Israeli tanks encountered strong resistance from Hamas fighters, who used the tunnel network for ambush attacks. Hamas also fired rockets at Israel once more on Tuesday evening. It attacked Israel on October 7th, killing 1,400 people, mostly civilians, and abducting around 240 hostages to the Gaza Strip. Israel then attacked Hamas in the Gaza Strip, first from the air and then with ground troops. According to Hamas, more than 10,000 Palestinians have been killed since then.
Since the start of the military operation once morest the Islamist Hamas, the Israeli armed forces say they have attacked 14,000 targets in the Gaza Strip. Last month, more than 100 entrances to tunnels were destroyed and numerous Hamas commanders were killed, military spokesman Hagari said on Tuesday evening. In addition, Israeli units destroyed over 4,000 weapons, many of which were hidden in mosques, kindergartens and residential areas.
“This is evidence of Hamas’ cynical use of civilians as human shields,” Hagari said. On October 7, terrorists from Hamas and other groups killed more than 1,400 people and kidnapped numerous hostages into the Gaza Strip in massacres and attacks in the Israeli border area. The Israeli armed forces then carried out air strikes and moved ground troops into the densely populated coastal strip. The number of Palestinians killed in the Gaza Strip has risen to more than 10,300, according to the Hamas-controlled Ministry of Health. The numbers cannot currently be independently verified.
In view of the dramatic situation for the civilian population in the densely populated area, pressure is growing on Israel to call for a ceasefire in order to enable more urgently needed aid deliveries and to evacuate foreign nationals from the Gaza Strip. US President Joe Biden also asked Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for a break in fighting – specifically for three days. This might also be used to free Hamas hostages, reported the US news portal Axios, citing US government circles.
In an interview with > on Tuesday, Netanyahu reiterated the possibility of short ceasefires. He told the US broadcaster that he still rejected a general ceasefire without the release of the hostages kidnapped by the radical Islamic Hamas. “As far as the small tactical breaks – an hour here, an hour there – we have already had them.”
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