By Josef Forster, Oskar Luis Bender and Björn Stritzel
Drone terrorist eliminated ++ Over 100 terror tunnels destroyed ++ Internet and telephone down
Israel expands its anti-terror operation!
As announced, there were attacks in the northern Gaza Strip during the night and increased attacks from the air. The Israeli army was able to achieve important successes.
More than 100 terror tunnels destroyed
As announced, the Israeli Air Force drastically increased its missions in the Gaza Strip – for hours the fire flickered with new explosions in the smoke.
According to the military, 150 underground targets were hit. These included “tunnels used by terrorists, underground combat rooms and other underground infrastructure,” the Israeli army said on Saturday.
Photos show attacks particularly in Gaza City. The buildings are dark because they have no electricity. According to the Palestinian telecom operator Paltel, the telephone and internet are down.
Threatening terrorist killed
The Israeli army also said it managed to kill several Hamas fighters. Among them: Asem Abu Rakaba, who is said to have been responsible for Hamas’s air operations – an important success.
► Rakaba was involved in planning the Hamas attack on October 7th. “He led the terrorists who paraglided into Israel. And he was responsible for the drone attacks on Israeli military posts,” said an army spokesman.
“Firepower never seen before”
While there are many indications that Israel is gradually beginning its expected ground offensive, there has been no confirmation of this from the Israeli side. The US broadcaster “CBS News“ refers to two “US officials” who assume that the ground operation will start slowly.
The army quoted an unnamed colonel on X (formerly Twitter) as saying that the Israeli military was using “firepower never seen before in the Gaza Strip.”
Brigadier General Gilad Keinan of the air force said around a hundred warplanes dropped hundreds of missiles overnight and destroyed hundreds of Hamas targets.
“The goal is clear: to destroy everything that has to do with Hamas,” said the general.
According to the Israeli news site ynet, the soldiers remain in the Gaza Strip. In parallel to the ground operations, there are massive air and sea attacks on the city of Gaza and its surroundings. The military leadership is now discussing how to proceed.
The trigger for the heavy blows against the Hamas barbarians: the unprecedented Attack by the terrorist group on October 7th. Three weeks ago, terrorists invaded Israeli territory, murdered more than 1,400 people and kidnapped hundreds.
In response to the terrorist attack, the military called up around 300,000 reservists. They have been standing by ever since, waiting for the ground offensive to begin.
► In the past few days there have been individual, time-limited advances by ground troops. According to BILD research, Israeli forces entered the Gaza Strip from the north on Wednesday and Thursday evening with several dozen armored vehicles. Their goal: to cut a path through Hamas’ defenses so that they can advance quickly and safely when the major offensive begins.