From the Liveblog of
Thursday, November 9, 2023
IDF says its forces are fighting in Gaza City’s ‘military quarter’ near Shifa Hospital
Add ToI as a Preferred Source on GoogleEmanuel (Mannie) Fabian is The Times of Israel's military correspondent
The Israel Defense Forces says its 162nd Division is operating in Hamas’s “military quarter” of Gaza City, clashing frequently with terror operatives.
According to the IDF, the so-called military quarter, adjacent to Shifa Hospital, is “the heart” of Hamas’s intelligence and operational activities, and sites in the area were used to plan and prepare the October 7 onslaught.
It says that in recent days, forces of the Givati Infantry Brigade and tanks entered the quarter to destroy Hamas infrastructure. Amid clashes in the area, more than 50 Hamas operatives were killed, the IDF says.
The IDF says troops found intelligence materials, tunnels, weapons manufacturing plants and anti-tank missile launch positions.
The quarter houses “strategic” Hamas sites, according to the IDF, including the terror group’s intelligence and air defense headquarters, political bureau offices, and a police station.
The IDF says the largest Hamas training camp is also in the quarter, along with other military positions, weapons manufacturing plants and warehouses, command centers, offices of Hamas commanders, and underground infrastructure — all embedded in the “heart of the civilian population.”
“This is further proof of the terrorist organization’s cynical use of the residents of the Gaza Strip as a human shield for its murderous terrorist activity,” the IDF says.
It adds that fighting in the quarter continues.
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