IDF rejects CNN claim many Hamas battalions remain operational, says most dismantled

Responding to a CNN investigation claiming that only three of Hamas’s 24 battalions in the Gaza Strip are “combat ineffective,” the IDF says that the conclusions are not accurate.

“From the intelligence and findings on the ground, most of the Hamas Brigades have been dismantled. It is estimated that most of the battalions are at a low level of competency and can no longer function as a military framework,” the IDF says in response to a query.

“The claims made in the article contradict the achievements of the forces on the ground, and create a false representation of the situation of Hamas in Gaza,” the response continues.

“The commanders of the IDF and its troops work day and night to achieve the goals of the war and reach unprecedented achievements in the fight against the Hamas terror organization,” the IDF adds.

The investigation by CNN found that eight of the 24 Hamas battalions are still “combat effective” — able to carry out missions against Israeli troops.

A further 13 battalions are “degraded,” but still partly operational, the report found, and only three are totally “combat ineffective.”

Some seven battalions have managed to reconstitute at least once since being severely degraded earlier in the war, either by merging severely degraded cells into new, combat-effective forces, or by recruiting new fighters, the report said.

The military has acknowledged returning in some instances to areas in Gaza that its forces had previously evacuated after identifying Hamas forces regrouping there.