Click to see full-size image. (The Times of Israel)
On January 26, the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) ordered the residents of several western neighborhoods in the city of Khan Younis to evacuate to the nearby al-Mawasi area in the southern Gaza Strip.
Lieutenant Colonel Avichay Adraee, the IDF’s Arabic-language spokesman, published a map of the zones that need to be evacuated alongside the announcement. The zones include the al-Nasr and al-Amal neighborhoods, the Khan Younis refugee camp, and the city center.
Earlier, the IDF said in an update that the 98th Division killed dozens of Hamas fighters and the Air Force carried out a wave of strikes in Khan Younis.
Overnight, IAF fighter jets struck several Hamas sites in the city, including apartments used by fighters, weapons depots, observation posts and staging grounds, the IDF said.
In addition, the Paratroopers Brigade of the 98th Division spotted five Hamas fighters entering a building, and directed an airstrike on them.
Nearby, the Maglan unit spotted four Hamas fighters who had fired an anti-tank missile hours earlier, and directed a fighter jet to strike them, the IDF said, adding that several more fighters were killed by troops in the area.
The Givati Brigade, meanwhile, eliminated a six-man Hamas cell with tank shelling and sniper fire in the Khan Younis, the IDF said.
Separately, the IDF released footage showing an airstrike that targeted a three-man cell of Hamas in Khan Younis. The airstrike was called in by soldiers of the Border Defense Corps’ 636th Combat Intelligence Collection unit.
Meanwhile, in northern Gaza, the IDF said that fighter jets struck several Hamas sites, including a building that was booby-trapped, an anti-tank launch position, and a tunnel shaft, while reservists of the 5th Brigade killed several Hamas fighters with tank shelling and by directing airstrikes in the area.
The IDF also announced that the Navy also carried out strikes along the Gaza coast overnight, as part of support for troops of the Nahal Brigade who were maneuvering in the Strip.
Recent battles in Gaza were not without losses for the IDF. A revest Sergeant Major from the Combat Engineering Corps’ 8170th Battalion was killed in the southern part of the Strip. His death has brought the number of Israeli troops killed since the start of ground operations to 220. More than 1,200 others have been wounded so far.
Meanwhile on the Palestinian side, the death toll from the Israeli attack has exceeded 26,083, according to the latest update by the Hamas-run health ministry. More than 64,487 others have been wounded. Women and children make up most of the casualties.
According to recent reports, talks on a ceasefire in Gaza and the release of some of the Israeli hostages there gained some momentum in recent days. The United States, Egypt and Qatar are playing a key role in the indirect talks between Hamas and Israel. However, a deal may not come out soon.
