Israeli ground forces have significantly weakened Hamas, particularly in its ability to withstand continuous missile strikes and advancing IDF infantry, the IDF Spokesperson's Unit said on Monday.
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According to the statement, Hamas has ceased to function as an organized entity in the northern section of the Palestinian enclave.
A notable example is the severe damage inflicted on Hamas's Shati battalion which belongs to the Gaza City Brigade and was involved in the brutal October 7 massacre. In a series of IDF operations, the battalion's underground infrastructure was substantially impacted, and commanders at the battalion and company levels were eliminated, with around 200 terrorists killed.
IDF forces also gained control of key strongholds in the battalion's area of operations. Notably, the Shati Battalion is linked to several central command locations, including the Al Shifa Hospital, which functions as a command center for Hamas's activities in the Gaza Strip.
The Daraj Tuffah Battalion, under the Hamas Gaza City Brigade, also incurred substantial damage during the war. The entire command structure, including battalion commanders, deputy battalion commanders and company commanders, was eliminated, along with roughly 260 additional terrorists, greatly diminishing its operational capabilities.
According to the IDF, prior to the war, Hamas’s military wing comprised of an estimated 30,000 members in the Gaza Strip, organized into five regional brigades, 24 battalions and around 140 companies.
In the past 24 hours, IDF forces and Shin Bet coordinated an airstrike that eliminated Yakub Ashur, commander of Hamas’s anti-tank missile unit in the Khan Younis Brigade. Ashur was instrumental in planning and executing attacks against the IDF.
Additionally, Israeli strikes eliminated several key Hamas operatives: Hamis Dababash, former chief of the intelligence wing; Tahsin Maslam, leader of the combat support unit for elite forces in Beit Lahia; Jihad Azam, an intelligence official in Gaza City's Zeitoun district; and Munir Harb, information chief of the Rafah Brigade.