Israeli minister told troops massed at border that they will soon see Gaza “from within”, raising fears of impending ground invasion

As Israel frantically searches for the mastermind of the Hamas attack, Israeli forces and several Palestinian and Lebanese militias recorded new firefights in Gaza, the West Bank and Lebanon this Thursday, on another day of violence in the region before the terrorist act . upcoming arrival of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip from Egypt.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant told Israeli army soldiers to “organize and be prepared” to enter Palestinian territory.

Another minister in Benjamin Netanyahu’s cabinet He stated that the army had been given a “green light” to invade the area when it was ready. He warned that the tunnels dug by Hamas would become the “largest cemetery in the world.”

The Israeli attacks on the Palestinian enclave began very early on the thirteenth day of the war, triggered by the attack by the Islamist group Hamas on October 7, which left 1,400 dead in Israel.

The army today claimed to have destroyed hundreds of Palestinian group facilities, including anti-tank missile launch sites, tunnels and intelligence infrastructure.

The attacks on the enclave also resulted in the deaths of “numerous terrorist operatives from the Nukbha forces, Hamas’ elite corps” and Rafat Harb Hussein Abu Hilal, head of the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, one of the militias. , where 3,785 people have been killed since hostilities began, according to figures from the Palestinian Ministry of Health.

Impending robbery

Parallel to the heavy bombardment and incessant firing of rockets from the Strip, several Israeli military leaders visited the troops deployed in the border area this Thursday.

“Now they see Gaza from afar, soon they will see it from within. The order will come,” Defense Minister Yoav Gallant promised the soldiers, referring to a possible ground invasion of Gaza.

For his part, the head of the Israeli Army’s Southern Command, Yarón Finkelman, also referred to the possibility of troops entering the enclave and expected the offensive to be “long and intense.”

While expectations of a ground attack are mounting on one side of the border, on the other side the people of Gaza are awaiting the arrival of the first trucks of humanitarian aid waiting on the Egyptian side of the Rafah crossing.

So far it has not been confirmed when the trucks will be allowed to enter, something that could happen as early as next Friday.

Violence is escalating in the West Bank

Just over 100 kilometers from Gaza, in the Palestinian refugee camp Nur Shams, the most violent incident was recorded today in the occupied West Bank since the start of the war between Israel and the Gaza Strip militias.

There, as part of a military operation lasting several hours, the Israeli army killed twelve Palestinians, according to information from the official Palestinian news agency Wafa.

An Israeli military spokesman reported that its forces entered the field to “arrest suspects, destroy infrastructure and seize weapons” and, in the context of a vigorous firefight and explosive attacks against its forces, using a drone attacked “a military army”. squadron”, something very unusual in this area.

Since the start of the war with the Gaza militias thirteen days ago, 79 Palestinians have been killed by fire from Israeli forces and settlers in the West Bank, while Israeli forces have arrested more than 520 Palestinians, including 153 in the last few hours.

In addition to Gaza and the West Bank, there were also significant firefights on the Israel-Lebanon border this Thursday, which has now totaled twelve consecutive days of hostilities.

Attack by the Lebanese Hezbollah group

The Lebanese Shia group Hezbollah today claimed to have carried out a rocket launch and several attacks on Israeli military targets, while the Al Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing, claimed responsibility for firing around 30 rockets from southern Lebanon.

Cross attacks in this area have intensified since October 8 last year and have already left at least 29 dead: five in Israel – four soldiers and one civilian – and at least 24 in Lebanon, including seven civilians – including a Reuters cameraman. agency, twelve members of Hezbollah and five members of Palestinian militias.

Hamas leaders

Two Hamas members, accused of masterminding the Palestinian Islamist movement’s bloody attack on Israeli territory on October 7, are at the top of Israel’s blacklist, which threatens to kill all militants from the group that carried out the Gaza Strip rules.

Mohamed Deif, head of Hamas’s military wing, and Yahya Sinwar, the political leader in the enclave, have been the targets of numerous assassination attempts and have spent time in both Israeli and Palestinian prisons. For two weeks they focused on Israel.

“All Hamas members are dead men,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared after the unprecedented attack that left 1,400 dead in Israel, most of them civilians, and nearly 200 hostages.

In response, Israel keeps the Gaza Strip under siege and bombs the small area daily.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant has emphasized: “Hamas terrorists have two options: be killed or surrender unconditionally. There is no third option.”

However, the Islamist movement, which is considered a “terrorist” group by the United States, Israel and the European Union, assures that it is “not afraid.”

Security sources outside Gaza say Sinwar and Deif are hiding in the enclave’s network of tunnels and underground shelters. Not just since the attack, but for years. (JO)