The ground invasion of the Gaza Strip is underway. On Tuesday, the Israeli side announced it was beginning to fight Hamas fighters in a network of underground tunnels.
On Friday, Israel’s ground operation in the northern part of the Gaza Strip began after three weeks of bombardments. Israeli infantry, supported by tanks and aircraft, attacked Gaza City, among other places. There will also be heavy fighting, including: in Beit Lahia.
Invasion of the Gaza Strip
On Tuesday, the Israeli army’s press service reported that units attacked Hamas fighters in an extensive network of tunnels built under Gaza Strip territory.
The Israeli side also reported that it had hit about 300 targets in the past 24 hours, including anti-tank positions and rocket launchers, as well as Hamas tunnels and military facilities.
The Israeli Security Authority (ISA) announced that it had eliminated another Hamas commander who led the October 7 attack. In a statement shared on Telegram, both agencies said the fighter was Nasim Abu Ajina, commander of Hamas’ Beit Lahia battalion.
500 km of tunnels?
According to “NYT”, the network of tunnels that Hamas has built over the years could be as long as 500 kilometers and up to 40 meters deep. Underground passageways are used to infiltrate the enemy, as well as to smuggle food, goods, people and weapons.
Hamas has become adept at producing its own weapons in underground bunkers and protecting them from sophisticated Israeli tracking systems.
Netanyahu rules out a ceasefire
On Monday, after the first successful rescue of a Hamas hostage, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected calls for a ceasefire and vowed to destroy the organization’s ability to continue governing Gaza.
Netanyahu emphasized that Israel’s current goal is the destruction of Hamas. He added that all wars cause unintended casualties among the civilian population, and that the Israeli attack targets Hamas and is a battle between “civilization and barbarism.”
Hamas has so far freed four civilians from the more than 200 hostages it captured during the militant group’s Oct. 7 attack. Israeli military intelligence believes many are being held in a network of tunnels.
Civil disaster
The Palestinian death toll rose to more than 7,700 on Saturday, according to the Gaza Strip Ministry of Health. Parts of the Gaza Strip have been destroyed. More than 1.4 million people fled their homes, with almost half taking refuge in schools and UN shelters.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reiterated its alarm that the Gaza Strip faces an “impending public health catastrophe” as the territory grapples with mass displacement and destruction of water infrastructure. The WHO previously condemned Israel’s actions in the Gaza Strip.
Source: Do Rzeczy
Roy Brown is a renowned economist and author at The Nation View. He has a deep understanding of the global economy and its intricacies. He writes about a wide range of economic topics, including monetary policy, fiscal policy, international trade, and labor markets.
