The Telegraph
Hamas ambushes Israel from tunnels near Gaza border
Danielle Sheridan – October 29, 2023
Israeli troops clashed with Hamas for the first time since the ground offensive began in an ambush from its network of tunnels in northern Gaza.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) killed several terrorists after spotting them “exiting the shaft of a tunnel in the Gaza Strip” near the Erez Crossing that was stormed on Oct 7.
Israel later said it believed the militants were attempting to cross the border into Israel for another surprise attack.
Hamas said its militants clashed with Israeli troops as they entered the northwest Gaza Strip, using small arms and anti-tank missiles against the armoured convoy.
Guided by troops on the ground Israeli aircraft also struck two Hamas staging posts, killing several Hamas members, the IDF claimed.
Israel intensified its war with Gaza over the weekend, sending in troops and tanks on Friday night as part of a ground operation aimed at destroying Hamas.
But it stopped short of a full invasion of its forces massing on the Gaza border.https://cf-particle-html.eip.telegraph.co.uk/63d27584-172c-4312-bbc6-2e6a01c01203.html?direct=true&id=63d27584-172c-4312-bbc6-2e6a01c01203&truncated=false&expandable=false
Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, the Israeli military spokesman, said on Sunday that movement into Gaza would be a “gradual expansion”.
He said: “We will do everything we can from the air, sea and land to ensure the safety of our forces and achieve the goals of the war.”
Analysts have speculated that Israel’s preference for a low-intensity ground offensive betrays concerns about hostages held in Gaza and threats from Arab proxies linked to Hamas.
As pressure has mounted on Israel to slow the offensive in order to negotiate the release of hostages, its defence minister Yoav Gallant spoke to families of captives on Sunday.
In an attempt to reassure them, he said: “The ground move is intertwined with the effort to return the kidnapped and is intended, among other things, to increase the chance of returning our people. If there is no military pressure on Hamas, nothing will progress.”
He added: “I have two goals: to return the abductees and win the war, the return of the abductees and locating the missing is a task of utmost importance.”
The ground assault resulted in an almost total communications blackout in the coastal enclave.
Meanwhile, as clashes on the Lebanese border escalate, Rear Admiral Hagari said the IDF responded to the fire from Lebanon toward the northern border by striking military targets, infrastructure and posts belonging to Hezbollah overnight.
Lebanon’s Hezbollah said it shot down an Israeli drone over southern Lebanon with a surface-to-air missile.
Hezbollah added that the drone was hit near Khiam, about three miles from the border, and was seen falling into Israeli territory.
Capability to shoot down a drone
Two security sources in Lebanon said it was the first time Hezbollah had announced downing an Israeli drone.
Mohanad Hage Ali, of the Carnegie Middle East Center, said: “They have insinuated they have this capability but it is the first time they declare they have this kind of capability to shoot down a drone.”
The United Nations’ Lebanon peacekeeping force Unifil said one of its members was injured after shells hit its base near the village of Houla on the Lebanese-Israeli border on Saturday.
The clashes with Hamas in northern Gaza are thought to be the first in which militants have emerged from tunnels, but is likely to become a theme of the ground assault.
The Erez Crossing, which was built in 2005 when Israel withdrew its settlers and soldiers from Gaza, was at the time considered a symbol of passage between Israel and Gaza.
The IDF accused Hamas of having deliberately built tunnels next to the crossing, which was formerly used by Gazans to enter Israel for work or medical treatment, in order to “attack the humanitarian crossing and harm everyone in the area”.
Hamas spent two decades building a labyrinthine network of underground tunnels which makes a central part of its defences.https://cf-particle-html.eip.telegraph.co.uk/5bf20ca6-3f78-4b5f-97ec-f32a757dcfed.html?direct=true&id=5bf20ca6-3f78-4b5f-97ec-f32a757dcfed&truncated=false&expandable=falsehttps://cf-particle-html.eip.telegraph.co.uk/7a13177e-311d-4b5a-bc79-7786c96a919a.html?direct=true&id=7a13177e-311d-4b5a-bc79-7786c96a919a&truncated=false&expandable=false
Israel says the tunnels have entrances hidden beneath schools, mosques and houses and are said to be 300 miles long with lighting, electricity and rail tracks for transport.
Accused of psychological games
After Sunday’s clashes, Rear Adm Hagari said: “We killed the terrorists that were on the security fence, who were trying to infiltrate and were trying to attack Israel.”
Mr Gallant accused Hamas on Sunday of playing “psychological games” over hostages after it offered to free all captives in exchange for Palestinian prisoners in Israeli jails.
“The stories published by Hamas are part of their psychological games. Hamas is cynically using those who are dear to us – they understand the pain and the pressure,” he told relatives of some of the 230 hostages.https://cf-particle-html.eip.telegraph.co.uk/f0dff9cd-562a-4bcf-a740-6bd2c38091d9.html?direct=true&id=f0dff9cd-562a-4bcf-a740-6bd2c38091d9&truncated=false&expandable=false
On Saturday, Hamas’s leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, said the group was ready for an “immediate” prisoner swap with Israel.
Mr Gallant said: “They seek the collapse of Israeli society from within and are using the hostages in a brutal manner.
“The military operation is intended, among other things, to increase the chance of returning our people.”
Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, has said that about 50 hostages have been killed in Israeli strikes, a claim that could not be independently verify.
So far the group has released four hostages.
Those confirmed to be held captive rose to 239 on Sunday.