Gaza Resistance eliminates Israeli 401st Brigade commander in Jabalia

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Israeli media
20 Oct 2024 23:26
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Palestinian Resistance fighters eliminated the commander of the 401st Brigade, while a second commander was seriously injured in Jabalia.

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The now deceased commander of teh 401st Brigade, Colonel Ehsan Daqsa, performs a military salute, as he takes over command of the Briagde, on June 25, 2024. (Social media)

The commander of the Israeli 162nd Division's 401st Armored Brigade, Colonel Ehsan Daqsa, was eliminated by Palestinian Resistance fighters in Jabalia, the northern Gaza Strip, on Sunday.

An Israeli military investigation into the incident found that Colonel Daqsa was positioned outside his tank with a number of other officers when an explosive device was detonated near them.

Daqsa, the commander of the 52nd Battalion, and two other officers were positioned outside the tank in Jabalia and walked several meters to an observation point. Palestinian Resistance fighters had booby-trapped, the presumably cleared site, with explosives, killing Daqsa and seriously wounding the commander of the 52nd Battalion. Two other officers were listed with light and moderate injuries.

The commander of the 401st Brigade is among two of the highest-ranking Israeli officers killed during the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip. His killing marks a major achievement for the Resistance in Jabalia, a city that has defended against three Israeli military campaigns, seen extensive bombing, and the forced displacement of thousands.

First commander of Generals' Plan eliminated

In the latest military campaign against Jabalia, Daqsa was among those leading the so-called "Generals' Plan", which aims to transform the area into a closed military zone. This means that civilians would either be forced to leave their homes by soldiers on the ground or face starvation and death.

Daqsa was also pictured with Palestinian civilians, as he oversaw the implementation of ethnic cleansing in Jabalia.

Israeli command chain rattled

The only other colonel to be killed in the Gaza Strip, was Colonel Itzhak Ben Bassat, the head of the Golani Brigade chief's forward command team, who was killed along with eight other troops in an ambush in Gaza City's Shujaiya neighborhood, on December 12, 2023.

Facing a crisis in its command chain, after Palestinian Resistance fighters eliminated multiple top-ranking Israeli officers, the Israeli military command appointed the deputy head of the 162nd Division to command the 401st Brigade in the meantime.

Further shedding light on the systematic crisis that Israeli occupation forces suffer from, today's ambush will force Lieutenant Colonel Daniel Ella, the former commander of the 52nd Battalion, who was moderately injured in July, to return to command the battalion after his replacement was seriously wounded on Sunday.

Moreover, Colonel Benny Aharon, who had handed over his position as commander of the 401st Brigade to Daqsa in June 25, 2024, will be brought back to serve as deputy head of the 162nd Division.