The Chief of the General Staff of the Israeli Army, Lieutenant General Herzi Haleviassured this Sunday afternoon that his forces are expanding their operations towards the south of the Gaza Strip, an area where ground troops had not entered until now.
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“We fought hard and exhaustively in the north of the Strip, and now we are doing it in the south,” Halevi declared, after In recent hours, the evacuation of several neighborhoods in the southern city of Khan Younis was ordered, from where many Gazans are now traveling to go to the city of Rafah..
(You can read: Violence continues: Israeli army continues attacking Gaza after the end of the truce)
In his daily press conference, Israeli Army spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari confirmed that the Army is expanding its ground offensive to “all areas of the Strip.”
In turn, since the truce was broken on Friday, The Israeli Army intensified its bombing in the southern and central area of the enclave, areas where Israeli troops are expected to focus their operations in the following days. after taking control of most of the northern area of the enclave, including Gaza City, as part of its ground offensive that began on October 27.
“In the north we dismantled two Hamas brigades,” and Israeli forces such as the 162nd Division “are still operating within” this area. “Yesterday and today we eliminated many brigade commanders, company commanders and many operatives, and yesterday morning we began the same process in the south,” Halevi remarked.
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The Army reported in a statement that, based on intelligence information, a fighter jet attacked and killed Haitham Khuwajari, commander of Hamas’ Shati Battalion, who “ensured terrorist activity at Shifa Hospital” and was in charge of a group of militants who infiltrated Israel to massacre and kidnap people during the October 7 attack that sparked the war.
According to Halevi, The offensive in the south of the enclave will have the same strength as in the north, “and Hamas commanders will confront the Israeli Army everywhere”.
(You can read: Israel withdraws its negotiation team in Qatar after the dialogue with Hamas stalls)
According to analysts and media, Israeli operations towards the south of Gaza will have to be more precise and focused, in part due to the large presence of the Palestinian civilian population displaced from the north.
Precisely, the Arabic spokesman for the Israeli Army, Avichay Adraee, urged residents of six neighborhoods of Khan Younis this Sunday to evacuate to other areas of the enclave.
“Dear residents of the Gaza Strip, the Israel Defense Forces have resumed their vigorous actions against Hamas and other terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip. We kindly inform you of the following in order to preserve your safety and security,” he wrote Adraee through the social network X, in a message accompanied by a list of neighborhoods and a map that detailed where the population of each area should evacuate.
(Also: Israel resumes bombing in Gaza after failure of attempts to extend truce with Hamas)
Former Mossad chief Yossi Cohen assured this Sunday that military actions in the southern zone will be more difficult due to the high density of civilians, whose evacuation “will be much more complicated”.
“This doesn’t give us much room to act,” Cohen said in an interview with Israeli News Channel 12.
Recently, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken visited Israel to obtain more details of Israel’s military plans in southern Gaza, and called for maximum protection of civilian lives in this phase of the war. .
US says Israel ‘strives’ to minimize death toll
Israel bombed the Gaza Strip again this Sunday, despite growing international pressure to protect the civilian population and resume the truce with the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
The White House, however, assured this Sunday that Israel is “making efforts” to minimize civilian casualties in Gaza since the resumption of fighting after a seven-day truce, amid the intensification of calls from the community to protect Palestinian civilians.
(See also: Israel had the Hamas attack plan more than a year ago and rejected it: report)
“We believe they have been receptive to our messages about trying to minimize civilian casualties”said to ABC White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby.
The Israeli military has resumed its offensive in northern Gaza “in a smaller and more precise way,” he added, noting that in the past two days Israel posted online a map where civilians could move to find shelter and flee the fighting. .
“There aren’t many modern armies that would do that,” Kirby continued. “They’re making an effort.”
(Also: Hamas blames Israel for the end of the truce and Qatar affirms negotiations)
At least 15,523 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip by Israeli bombings since October 7The Ministry of Health of the territory, governed by Hamas, announced this Sunday.
The ministry’s spokesman, Ashraf al Qidreh, also detailed that the Israeli military operations launched in response to the bloody attack by Hamas militiamen in Israel left 41,316 injured.
INTERNATIONAL EDITORIAL
*With information from EFE and AFP
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