Israel is ratcheting up ground operations in Gaza with troops, tanks and artillery battling Hamas fighters after the most intense aerial bombardment in 22 days of war that cut off communications to the Palestinian territory.
“Our forces are still in the field (in northern Gaza) and continue to fight,” Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, chief spokesman for the Israeli military, said Saturday. “We are making efforts to protect our forces with aerial fire.” The army said it has suffered no casualties, while Hamas said it had inflicted “heavy losses” on Israeli troops and equipment, according to a statement on Telegram.
The intensifying Israeli military push comes after more limited incursions in recent days by land and sea. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said earlier this week Israel was preparing for a ground invasion of the Palestinian coastal strip. US President Joe Biden said he’d asked Israel to delay a full-scale assault on Gaza to allow more hostages held by Hamas to be freed.
Israel has vowed to wipe out the Palestinian militant group after 2,500 of its fighters staged the deadliest attack in the country’s history, killing 1,400 people after breaking through a heavily-protected security fence and overrunning communities and military bases in southern Israel. Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist group by the US and European Union, is also holding 229 hostages including infants and elderly inside Gaza.
Israel’s army said it killed the heads of Hamas’s air and naval forces, which helped coordinate the Oct. 7 attacks, and air strikes hit 150 underground targets including tunnels and other subterranean military infrastructure. Israel has imposed a blockade on the crowded Gaza Strip, home to more than 2 million people, cutting off electricity, water and fuel supplies, with only a trickle of aid so far being allowed in from Egypt. The Hamas-led health authorities say more than 7,000 Palestinians have died from Israeli strikes.
Biggest Confrontation
The current fighting marks the biggest confrontation between Israel and Hamas, which fought two ground conflicts in 2008 and 2014 that each lasted several weeks. It’s also threatening to spiral into a regional war, with increasing cross-border clashes between Israel and militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. Iran, which sponsors both Hamas and Hezbollah, warned Friday that new fronts would open up against the US if it continues its unequivocal support for Israel.
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European leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron, while supporting Israel’s fight against Hamas, have urged Netanyahu to avoid a large-scale attack on Gaza that could cause major civilian deaths. Arab countries have condemned the Israeli military actions.
The families of the Israeli hostages demanded an immediate meeting with Netanyahu and other top officials, expressing acute anxiety that the ground operation will endanger the fate of their loved ones.
Talks mediated by Qatar aimed at securing the release of more captives were reported to be making progress Friday but Hamas said the deal was conditional on a temporary cease-fire. Hamas has set free four people to date — two US citizens and two elderly Israeli women.
Israel decided to press ahead with the ground operation in Gaza because Hamas is trying to win time to rebuild its military capability, said Major General (Reserve) Amos Gilead, a former top Defense Ministry official.
“We will use our air force, navy and ground forces to destroy this monster,” Gilead said. “It will take time, maybe we will need to take Gaza, maybe not.”
The government remains committed to getting the hostages out safely, he added.