The IDF on Tuesday continued its major division-level new push in western Khan Yunis, which it had started on Monday, maintaining the most intense fighting since early December when the military first entered other parts of Hamas’s southern capital.
Combined between Monday and Tuesday, more than 100 Hamas terrorists have already been killed in larger-than-usual organized battles, with 50 Hamas fighters killed on Monday and dozens more on Tuesday.
There were no signs that the incident in central Gaza in which 21 IDF soldiers were killed was having any direct impact on the ongoing Khan Yunis attack.
On Monday, Division 98 unleashed serious forces from its seven brigades, artillery, tanks, and air support and surrounded western Khan Yunis, which until now, the IDF had mostly steered clear of.
On Tuesday, the IDF said it had killed a number of ambush units with rocket-propelled grenade launchers and anti-tank missiles, as well as a number of Hamas forces in extremely close-range fighting.
The IDF’s message early Monday morning about large amounts of airstrikes was in preparation to give the ground forces an easier time moving into the new areas.
For the last seven weeks, IDF attacks on Khan Yunis had focused on the northern and eastern portions of the city.
On both days, the IDF called western Khan Yunis the heart of Hamas’s operations there, including areas where its top two leaders, Yahya Sinwar and Muhammad Deif, grew up.
Further, the IDF said that it recognizes that this part of Khan Yunis is the most dense area in the city in terms of having less room to maneuver and a larger number of civilians and sensitive sites, including hospitals.
It said that it had learned many lessons from dealing with some parallel issues in northern Gaza, while also noting some critical differences unique to southern Gaza.
The IDF hopes this new push will break the ability of the Khan Yunis Brigade to continue to fight as an organized force.
There are still no immediate plans though to enter Rafah or take control of the Philadelphi Corridor.
Also, the IDF did not say anything specific about a lead toward Hamas’s leadership or the hostages, though the operation seemed, at the very least, designed to increase pressure on the terror group.
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