The Israeli military has said that Hamas has been destroyed in northern Gaza, and the Jewish state will now concentrate in the central and southern regions, and that the war is expected to last at least a year.
Israeli Defense Forces Major General Daniel Hagari announced over the weekend that 12 battalions of a Palestinian terrorist organization operating in northern Gaza had been defeated.
“We have completed the dismantling of Hamas' military framework in the northern Gaza Strip and will continue to deepen our achievements,” Hagari said.
He said there would continue to be scattered fighting in the north, but that Hamas was “without a framework and without a commander.”
“Right now, we are focused on dismantling Hamas in the south-central Gaza Strip. We will do it differently and thoroughly, based on the lessons we have learned from previous battles.”
The official said central and southern Gaza is “densely populated and saturated with terrorists” using “an underground city of branching tunnels”. According to the Guardian.
“It will take a year to dismantle Hamas,” said Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin.
“The schedule is long,” he said.
“In 2002, it took two months to enter a Palestinian city, and it took terrorists two months to enter a Palestinian city,” Yadlin said, referring to the Israeli military's offensive in the West Bank after a spate of suicide bombings there more than two decades ago. It took me two years to stop it,” he said. “So Israel is looking at nine months to a year.” [in Gaza now].Depends on how long Hamas maintains [on]”
IDF operations have killed around 8,000 Hamas fighters in northern Gaza alone, killed key commanders and seized around 30,000 weapons. According to the Financial Times.
The announcement marks a major breakthrough in Israel's campaign to eradicate Hamas, marking the terrorist group's deadly attack on Israel on October 7, which left around 1,200 Israelis dead and 240 taken hostage. This took place on the third month since the surprise attack.
Before the weekend's announcement, Israel had already begun winding down operations in northern Gaza and directing resources to attacks in central and southern Gaza.
The Biden administration has called on Israel to scale back ground combat and rocket attacks in the territory and instead focus on more targeted attacks against Hamas leadership, but Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: It maintains a pledge not to let up on the war until the terrorist organization is destroyed. It is no longer a threat to Israel.
On the other hand, while the IDF's military objective is clearly the complete destruction of Hamas, it will be much more difficult to obtain the ability to eliminate generations of anti-Israel sentiment among the Gazan population.
Documents recovered by the IDF during a northern expedition show that Hamas leadership used youth summer camps in the Gaza Strip to indoctrinate generations against Israel and “create a culture of resistance and jihadism among children.” demonstrated that it promotes values.
The document was written in July by Hamas's military branch, the al-Qassam Brigades, Israeli President Isaac Herzog said Sunday on NBC's “Meet the Press,” and revealed the true nature of the group's summer camp. Outlined the purpose of
According to the newspaper, the goals are to “promote resistance and jihadi culture,” develop “the mental, spiritual and physical readiness of children to serve in the resistance in the future,” and “contribute to the militarization of society through training.” Initiatives are listed. jerusalem post office.
Israel's brutal campaign against Hamas has also rattled the Palestinian public, with more than 20,000 Palestinians reportedly killed in rocket attacks and ground operations as of the new year.
Among the recent dead was the son of Al Jazeera's Gaza bureau chief Wael al-Dahdou. The newspaper's photojournalist, Hamza Wael al-Dahdou, 27, was killed along with his colleague in a rocket attack on the southern city of Khan Younis on Sunday.
The death toll among Palestinians in the West Bank is also rising, with more than 300 killed since October 7.
At least seven people were killed in an Israeli airstrike in the West Bank on Sunday, news agencies announced. CNN. IDF officials said the dead were terrorists, but news that four of the victims were brothers sparked anger among Palestinians, and public funeral processions were held in the West Bank.
An increasingly delicate situation is complicated by growing fears that a second front against Hezbollah will open up in Lebanon as Israel and its terror group continue to exchange rocket fire across the border. I have to.
On Sunday, about eight rockets fired from inside Lebanon landed in Israel, and the Israel Defense Forces responded.
No casualties were reported on either side, but Israel has repeatedly warned that its patience with the Lebanese government, which involves the heavily militarized Hezbollah, is running out.
According to Israeli newspapers, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu warned at a cabinet meeting on Sunday that Hezbollah “needs to learn what Hamas has already learned…terrorists will not be spared.” Haaretz.
“We are determined to protect our people and return northerners safely to their homes,” Netanyahu said, adding: “We will do so through diplomatic means, but if not, we will act in other ways.”
The newspaper reported that U.S. officials were desperately trying to ease rising tensions on the Lebanese border amid fears that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu would open a new front to secure his political position. It is said that there is. washington post.
Diplomats sent to the region said a recent Defense Intelligence Agency assessment concluded that an Israeli military victory against Hezbollah would be difficult with Israeli military resources already scattered during the Gaza war. warned Israel.
with post wire
