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Entering Rafah was a 'tragic mistake': Former IOF major general

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
30 May 2024 21:58
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The former ombudsman for the Israeli occupation military acknowledges that "Israel" has "a small army incapable of defeating Hamas."

A tank with an "Israel" flag on it entering the Gazan side of the Rafah border crossing on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 (Israeli occupation forces via AP)

Entering the city of Rafah in southern Gaza did not benefit "Israel", pointed out Itzhak Brik, Major General (Reserve) in the Israeli occupation military and former ombudsman for the occupation forces.

Brik considered that entering Rafah was a "tragic mistake" that isolated "Israel" from the rest of the world and risked peace with Egypt, suggesting that this move would forever prevent the Israeli occupation entity from retrieving the captives held by the Palestinian Resistance in Gaza.

Touching on his meetings with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Reserve Major General said that he repeatedly explained to the premier the reasons why entering Rafah should be avoided.

He revealed that Netanyahu deceived him into believing he was convinced by the reasons, but as soon as the meeting ended, Netanyahu prioritized his own interests over "Israel's".

Brik told the Israeli public radio that the Israeli military is "spreading illusions, throwing dust in the eyes of Israelis, and not telling the truth."

Reiterating the need to halt the fighting, Brik acknowledged that "Israel" has "a small army incapable of defeating Hamas" and that this army will certainly face a problem if it launches a full-scale war.

Israeli officials leading Israelis 'like lambs to the slaughter'

In a related context, Brik affirmed the Israeli army's inability to defeat Hamas and Hezbollah, pointing out that "every day the war continues, our situation worsens."

In an article he wrote for the Israeli newspaper Maariv, the former ombudsman considered that "Israel's collapse" is a matter of time.

He explained that Israeli political and military officials, who are leading the war on Gaza, do not want to acknowledge the harsh realities they are responsible for and instead want to continue fighting at any cost to stay in power for a little longer.

"They must be stopped; they are leading Israelis like lambs to the slaughter. This is a group that has completely lost its mind and gone off the rails," Brik stressed.

Meanwhile, the Palestinian Resistance continues to inflict heavy losses on the Israeli occupation forces on various fronts, especially in southern Rafah, where fierce battles are ongoing.

Earlier on Thursday, al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced that its fighters engaged three Israeli soldiers with an anti-personnel rocket that hit them directly in Rafah.

On its part, al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) movement, announced that its fighters targeted an assembly of Israeli soldiers and vehicles in Yibna camp, southern Rafah.

In a joint operation, al-Quds Brigades and al-Qassam Brigades targeted two Israeli military vehicles with Tandem and RPG shells east of Rafah.

On Wednesday, the Israeli occupation military confirmed that three of its soldiers from the 50th Battalion of the elite Nahal Brigade were killed and 26 others were injured, including seven in serious condition, during battles with the Palestinian Resistance in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Army Radio revealed the details of the ambush that soldiers from the 50th Battalion of the elite Nahal Brigade were lured into. It explained that the Israeli soldiers entered a building from which an anti-tank rocket was fired at their vehicles, before an explosive device planted by the Palestinian Resistance inside the building was detonated, causing the building to collapse.