Illustrative image.
On April 9, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Hamas Movement, released video footage from a recent ambush near the city of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip that claimed the lives of four troops from the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF).
The ambush, codenamed “Al-Abrar” [The Righteous in Arabic] took place at a key area to the east of Khan Younis known as al-Zanah on April 6.
The released footage showed Hamas field commanders planning the ambush as well as the group’s fighters setting up a number of surveillance cameras and explosive devices at a key route used by the IDF in al-Zanah.
After a group of Israeli troops entered the kill zone, Hamas fighters blew up the explosive devices then opened fire at them from point blank, killing several on the spot.
The footage shows that the IDF attempted to evacuate its troops by quickly dispatching an armored force to the scene. However, Hamas fighters targeted and damaged two Merkava 4M main battle tanks using rocket-propelled grenades. Later, the force managed to withdraw from al-Zanah along with the casualties.
THE IDF acknowledged later that a captain and three sergeants from the Commando Brigade’s training base were killed in the ambush. More troops were reportedly wounded.
The well-planned and executed ambush brought the toll of slain Israeli troops in the ground operations in Gaza to 260. More than 1,550 others have been wounded in the Strip, so far.
On April 7, just a day after the deadly ambush, the IDF announced that the 98th Paratroopers Division had withdrawn all of its brigades from Khan Younis, including the Commando Brigade. By April 10, Palestinian media reported that the city and its surroundings have very much returned under the control of Hamas.
The ambush marked the failure of the IDF ground operation in Khan Younis which began last December. Despite occupying most of the city and its surroundings, Israeli troops have clearly failed to end Hamas presence there.
Despite repeated failures in Gaza, Israel appears to be determined to go on with the war, which has so far claimed the lives of more than 33,000 Palestinsins and wounded more than 75,000 others. The IDF is still reportedly preparing to launch a ground operation in Rafah, which is located to the south of Khan Younis right along the Strip’s border with Egypt.
More than 1,5 million Palestinians are currently taking shelter in Rafah. The IDF may have opted to cut its losses and withdraw from Khan Younis in order to use the city as a gathering for people during the attack on Rafah.
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