Senior officers in the IDF Southern Command claim that Hamas was surprised by the renewed fighting, and the organization did not expect Israel to return to ground maneuvers.
„The enemy was surprised by our initiative and by the firepower,“ sources in the military emphasized. „It was in the mindset that the war was over and that we wouldn’t return to fight, and therefore, the attack caught them by surprise.“
The IDF has identified that the Hamas leaders and operatives are hiding in hospitals and schools. During the ground maneuver, tunnels were located a kilometer underground and destroyed, and the forces continue to locate and map out terror infrastructure.
In the northern Gaza Strip, the forces located approximately five tunnels that reached the area of the fence. IDF forces are currently operating in Shejaiya and Daraj Tufah on a slope that overlooks the sea. At the same time, the IDF continues to operate on the Netzarim Corridor up to the Salah al-Din Corridor.
From the air, the Air Force has struck 1,200 targets, including operatives, field commanders, company and battalion commanders, and Hamas infrastructure – mostly weapons, manufacturing workshops, launchers, and launching pits. According to the IDF, so far, 350 terrorists have been eliminated, including seven battalion commanders, 11 company commanders, and some 40 officials and sources of knowledge, and 12 governmental targets were hit.
Regarding the humanitarian situation, IDF commanders say they are following the situation in Gaza. According to the commanders, there is enough food in storage and there is no starvation in Gaza.
