Hamas Says Its Fighters Killed 60 Israeli Troops In Gaza Over Past Week

The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Hamas Movement, killed more than 60 Israeli troops during 57 different operations in the Gaza Strip over the past week, the group’s spokesman Abu Obeida announced on January 25.

In a written statement published on Telegram, Abu Obeida said that Hamas fighters were also able to “completely or partially destroy 68 military vehicles”.

“Our fighters confirmed that they eliminated 53 Zionist soldiers at point-blank range, sniped 9 soldiers, and caused dozens of soldiers to fall between dead and wounded, in 57 different military missions. These missions targeted the infiltrating Zionist forces with shells, anti-fortification and anti-personnel explosive devices, and machine guns,” the spokesman said.

The spokesman added that Hamas fighters “demolished 4 houses, detonated the entrances of two tunnels and a minefield in the enemy’s soldiers, shot down two Skylark reconnaissance drones and seized 8 drones, including two suicide drones.”

“They bombarded military gatherings with mortar shells and short-range missiles across all combat fronts and launched rocket barrages of varying ranges into the Zionist entity,” he concluded.

Earlier this week, Hamas claimed responsibility for a complex attack in central Gaza that claimed the lives of at least 23 Israeli troops.

Hebrew media reported that at least 38 Israeli troops were wounded, eight of them inside Gaza, between January 25-26 only.

While Hamas has been leading the war with Israel, several other Palestinian armed factions have been contributing to the resistance in Gaza. On January 25, the al-Quds Brigade, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, released video footage showing its fighters attacking Israeli main battle tanks to the west of the city of Khan Younis in the southern part of the Strip with rocket-propelled grenades.

On the same day, another faction, the Mujahideen Brigades, released footage showing its fighters targeting an Israeli attack helicopter over Khan Younis with what appears to be a man-portable air defense system.

Israel has acknowledged losing 219 troops since it began ground operations in Gaza. More than 1,200 others have been wounded. Hamas and other factions believe that the real figures are much higher. This may be true concerning Israel’s tight military censorship rules.

Source @South Front