"We are working to return the communities to normal," Brigadier General Dan Goldfuss, commander of the 98th Division, said Tuesday morning. "All the forces fought from Kerem Shalom to the northern Gaza Strip. We are preparing for phase two, phase of attack."
Documentation of the Chief of Staff's conversation with IDF forces operating in the sector // Photo: IDF Spokesperson
Regarding the harsh attack on the communities, he said: "Hundreds of terrorists launched an attack at dozens of infiltration points, houses and war rooms that burned their inhabitants. The fighters fought fiercely. The division has about 30 dead and 150 wounded. The incident is very difficult. I arrived at Gaza village on Saturday morning. It's starting to move through a community and pump forces in."
IDF force. "We have moved to the attack phase",
Regarding the organization and activity, he said: "The air force flew our commando units. The terrorists came with a huge amount of ammunition. The terrorists set up ambushes along roads for reinforcements.
The division's reserve brigades were mobilized immediately and entered the fighting as early as Saturday evening in the village of Gaza and on the levels. The 55th Brigade holds the village of Gaza on the fence, the 35th Brigade in the center of the sector. The division is preparing for an attack in Gaza and is ready for everything in the north."
Regarding the northern sector, he said: "We put forces in readiness for the north for an erupting event. There are no open battle zones at the moment. There could be one or two terrorists. There is a terrorist who came into the closet for two days and waited. I won't fly out of my chair if there's another squad. The last contact was a saboteur in Saad. But I wouldn't be surprised if there was. We couldn't find any tunnels on our property. We ruled out tunneling. There was an encounter by Magellan who pursued terrorists and abductees, but there was no entry deep into the Gaza Strip."
IDF soldiers on the Gaza border, photo: AFP
Reflecting on that Saturday morning, he shared: "At eight o'clock in the morning I arrived at the Reim parking lot for a party. The token fell when in the village of Gaza my officer was hit by a bullet. Reim parking lot had a very difficult sight. I run from place to place with four people to save civilians.
At the Nahal Oz outpost and at Kibbutz Nahal Oz, we see a very difficult event. The special units did an outstanding job and strived for contact. I meet the commander of the 99th Division and tell him that you are dining south and I am dining north. We will have to ask ourselves very, very difficult questions later."
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