From Hamas military chief said to tell Gaza City fighters to dig in ahead of battle as IDF reiterates call to leave
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Saudi newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat reports that Izz al-Din Haddad, who currently heads Hamas’s military wing in Gaza, has told Hamas fighters to remain in Gaza City and gird for battle, as Israel readies to invade and conquer the city.
In the message, Haddad reportedly says he will be on the front lines and predicts that the campaign will last for months.
Other terror groups have threatened to punish fighters if they leave the city, the report says.
Israel has repeatedly advised Gaza’s nearly 1 million residents to leave the city before it invades, though most have not heeded the call.
It is reiterating that message across the city for a second day now, saying civilians should evacuate immediately to the Israeli-designated humanitarian zone in the Strip’s south.
#عاجل إلى جميع سكان مدينة غزة والمقيمين في كل أحيائها، من المدينة القديمة والتفاح شرقًا وحتى البحر غربًا والذين لم يخلوا المنطقة بعد
⭕️جيش الدفاع مصمم على حسم حماس وسيعمل في منطقة مدينة غزة بقوة كبيرة، كما عمل في مختلف أنحاء القطاع.
⭕️من أجل سلامتكم، أخلوا فورًا عبر محور الرشيد… pic.twitter.com/MTWxUm0jV6
— افيخاي ادرعي (@AvichayAdraee) September 10, 2025
“The IDF is determined to defeat Hamas and will operate in the Gaza City area with great force, just as it has throughout the Strip,” says Col. Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesperson on X.
The IDF estimates that around 150,000 have so far evacuated, but has accused Hamas of blocking people trying to leave.
The Times of Israel Community.