IDF says it has dismantled half of Hamas’s forces in Rafah, killed at least 550 gunmen

The Israel Defense Forces says it has dismantled about half of Hamas’s fighting force in Rafah, killing at least 550 gunmen in the area, as the operation against the terror group in the Gaza Strip’s southernmost city continues.

The IDF’s 162nd Division has been fighting in Rafah for more than 40 days, first taking control of the city’s eastern outskirts and the border crossing with Egypt in early May. In the second stage of the operation, about a week and a half later, the division captured the Brazil neighborhood.

The third stage of the Rafah offensive saw the IDF take control of the entire Egypt-Gaza border, known as the Philadelphi Route, as well as pushing into the city’s northwestern Tel Sultan neighborhood.

The IDF says it has killed at least 550 gunmen in the Rafah operation — that is, those it was able to physically identify following battles. Many more terror operatives were killed in strikes against buildings and tunnels, it has assessed. Additionally, an unknown number of terror operatives fled the Rafah area as the military began its offensive there.

Of Hamas’s Rafah Brigade’s four battalions, two — Yabna (South) and East Rafah — are considered to be almost completely dismantled, while the capabilities of the other two — Shaboura (North) and Tel Sultan (West) — are somewhat degraded due to IDF operations.

Along the Philadelphi corridor, the IDF says it has located hundreds of rockets, including dozens of long-range projectiles aimed at central Israel. Also in the border area, more than 200 tunnel shafts have been located, leading to many underground routes.

The IDF says it has located at least 25 “long” tunnels that reach the border with Egypt, some of which likely cross into Sinai and had been used by Hamas to smuggle weapons. The military says it is investigating these tunnels further.

Aside from the Philadelphi Route, the IDF says it has established “complete operational control” over the Brazil neighborhood and so-called NPK neighborhood of Rafah, near the Shaboura and Yabna camps. The latter neighborhood is considered to be a major Hamas stronghold, and the army says troops killed dozens of gunmen inside tunnels there.

The 162nd Division has lost 22 soldiers amid the fighting in Rafah, eight of whom were killed on Saturday in a blast in an armored vehicle that came under attack.