IDF wraps up 3-week raid in south Gaza; 250 gunmen killed, 6 km of tunnels destroyed
The bodies of six hostages were also recovered by the troops in Khan Younis. According to the military, Palestinians are allowed to return to areas that had been excluded from the humanitarian zone prior operation.
Israel Defense Forces concluded a three-week operation in southern Gaza Strip on Friday. The military claimed to have destroyed tunnels, killed more than 250 gunmen, and recovered six hostages’ bodies.
The 98th Division launched the raid in Khan Younis, and the outskirts Deir al-Balah in early August. IDF: The division was removed from Gaza on Friday morning as it prepared to conduct future operations.
The IDF reentered Khan Younis for the third time since the initial ground offensive earlier in the year. The IDF’s latest operations focused on recovering hostages’ bodies and destroying Hamas infrastructure using new intelligence.
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According to the military during the operation last month, combat engineers destroyed six tunnels that belonged to terrorist groups. The underground passageways totaled approximately six kilometers (3.7miles).
The military reported that troops found weapons and killed gunmen in some tunnels. They also located the areas where terrorists had been residing.
The IDF stated that the IDF also destroyed the Hamas above-ground infrastructure during the operation.
The military also said that troops located rocket launchers, weapons and intelligence material at an “central” Hamas Outpost in Deir al-Balah.
The IDF found six bodies in the Hamad Town complex of Khan Younis last week. They were taken hostage by Hamas and buried inside a tunnel.
The hostages included Alex Dancyg (75), Yagev Buchshtav (35), Chaim Peri (79), Yoram Metzger (8o), Nadav popplewell (51) and Avraham Munder (78).
IDF stated that Palestinian civilians can return to the al-Qarara area of Khan Younis following the operation. The area was evacuated before the operation in Khan Younis, and it was temporarily removed from Israel’s “humanitarian zones.”
Col. Avichay Adraee, IDF’s Arabic language spokesperson, stated that previously evacuated zones would be again considered part of the humanitarian zone. He released a map that shows the changes in the zone.
According to IDF assessments from July, 1.9 million Palestinians out of a total population of 2.3 million Gazans live in the zone humanitarian.
The zone is located between the western areas of Khan Younis, the al-Mawasi region on the coast of the Gaza Strip and Deir al-Balah in central Gaza.
The IDF has conducted a number of operations against Hamas, and the size of the area has been altered several times.
The Gaza Strip is approximately 13 percent larger than its total size as of Friday.
The IDF also announced on Friday morning that the Israeli Air Force had struck more than 30 sites within the Gaza Strip in the last day.
According to the IDF, these targets included buildings used by terrorist groups, weapons depots, and other infrastructure.
In the past 24 hours, troops from the 162nd Division have killed dozens in Rafah, a southern Gaza suburb.
According to military sources, the IDF offensive against the city of Rafah in southern Gaza Strip has “collapsed”.
Israel began its war in Gaza against Hamas after the terror group attacked southern Israel on 7 October, killing around 1,200 and taking 251 hostages. 103 are still believed to be in Gaza Strip.
Hamas’ Gaza Health Ministry says that more than 40,000 people have died or are presumed to be dead as a result of the fighting in Gaza. The death toll is not verified, and it does not distinguish between fighters and civilians. Israel claims to have killed 17,000 combatants and 1,000 terrorists in Israel during the attack on October 7.
