On Sunday evening, the IDF continued to expand its ground operations and deployed additional forces to the northern Gaza Strip. According to army estimates, dozens of terrorists have already been killed in the ground operation, but during the operation an IDF officer was also seriously wounded by a mortar shell and a soldier was moderately wounded during clashes with terrorists.
The IDF attacked targets of the Hezbollah terrorist organization in Lebanese territory // Credit: IDF Spokesperson
The IDF is trying, as much as possible, to maintain the fog of battle, noting that the objective of the ground incursion is to create a move on the ground that will lead to the dismantling of Hamas, and at the same time will exert heavy pressure on the terrorist organization in favor of releasing the hostages.
Earlier this evening, IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Daniel Hagari also addressed the Hamas leadership, saying: "We will persecute Yahya Sinwar until we reach him. The population of Gaza is already talking about Sinwar bringing disaster upon them." Hagari added: "Ground, air and naval forces eliminated commanders in Hamas' tactical echelon. We are assessing the situation and preparing to expand the activity in a gradual manner in order to achieve the goals of the war."
It is estimated that the war will last at least a few months. The idea is to exert pressure on Hamas, harm its "fighting spirit" and exact a price from it.
Penetration in the Erez area
In the afternoon, an unusual incident took place when IDF fighters eliminated several terrorists and prevented an infiltration into the Erez area. The fighters operating in the area identified terrorists who had exited a tunnel shaft inside the Gaza Strip. After they were identified, they fought a battle against them, killing several of them and wounding others. At the same time, other battles took place in which terrorists were eliminated. Yesterday, the IDF praised the cooperation between ground forces and the air force, and reported that aircraft directed by fighters attacked Hamas staging buildings and eliminated terrorists there.
IDF forces in the Gaza Strip, photo: IDF Spokesperson
The ground operation: slowly, but surely, Photo: IDF Spokesperson
"The support in the world is tremendous. IDF soldiers on the Gaza border, photo: AP
Military activity is expected to proceed with a thumbs-up, and the defense establishment is not talking about a winning move, but rather about a "long process" that will bring victory. The reasons for choosing an orderly course of action are many, but we can count the improvement of the sense of capability of the forces that will act slowly and cautiously, in a way that will maintain the security of our forces as much as possible; and the attempt to continue advancing the two war goals defined for the IDF – one is the collapse of Hamas with its governmental and military capabilities, and the other is the return of the hostages home.
Consider
In the meantime, the defense establishment is conducting thought processes about the day after the war with the aim of creating a situation in which there is no rearmament. For this purpose, among other things, a different "perimeter" between Israel and the Gaza Strip is needed, as well as a solution to the issue of smuggling from the Philadelphi route.
Another issue that is taken into account when choosing the nature of the operation is the northern arena. The defense establishment assessed that Hezbollah would choose to take advantage of the IDF's ground incursion into the Gaza Strip in order to set fire to the northern border and expand the fighting with Israel, which has been taking place in recent weeks, mainly on the contact line. In this sense, entry should reduce the likelihood that Hezbollah will expand its intervention.
However, the circle of firing from the north was expanded during the day. Alarms were activated in Kiryat Shmona and Rosh Pina. In Kiryat Shmona, a building was damaged, but there were no casualties. The IDF returned fire at the sources of fire and responded more broadly. This time, the assessment is that the one who fired at these ranges was not Hezbollah but Hamas, since it was Hamas that claimed responsibility for the rocket fire.
, reservists in northern Israel. Photo: Eyal Margolin, Ginny
IDF forces deployed in the northern sector, photo: Reuters
Tanks on the northern border, photo: Eyal Margolin, Genie
Netanyahu visiting the commando formation in the north, photo: Amos Ben Gershom/GPO
In addition, the IDF attacked the terrorist squad that launched at Har Dov, and Hezbollah's military infrastructure in Lebanese territory was attacked. The attack also destroyed many weapons with which the terrorists planned to launch additional rockets into Israeli territory. It should be noted that since the beginning of the war, Hezbollah has announced that almost 50 of its terrorists have been killed in southern Lebanon.
At around 17:00 P.M., launches were identified from Lebanese territory into Israeli territory, air defense fighters successfully intercepted two launches and the third fell in an open area. Several launches were also identified yesterday at the Malkiya area and the Armashe area, with no casualties, the IDF responded with fire at the sources of fire.
In addition, the army reported the destruction of three anti-tank squads, an attack on three Hezbollah military infrastructures, and a remotely manned aircraft that attacked a terrorist operating a drone moving towards Israeli territory in the border area. In addition, a terrorist who approached the border area at Hanita was eliminated.
Eyes for Judea and Samaria
Meanwhile, in the Judea and Samaria sector, the previous night security forces demolished the house of the terrorist who carried out the attack at the Hamra junction in which Leah (Lucy), Maya and Rina Di were murdered. Since the beginning of the war, 1,030 wanted persons have been arrested in the area, about 700 of whom are affiliated with Hamas.
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