Gaza Resistance inflicts major losses on invading Israeli forces
The Palestinian Resistance attacks Israeli assembly points and advancing forces amid the encirclement of Gaza City.
The Palestinian Resistance on the 120th day of Operation al-Aqsa Flood confronted the invading Israeli occupation forces from numerous directions in Gaza City.
The al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas' military wing, announced that they attacked three Israeli Merkava tanks using the notorious Yassin-105 anti-tank RPG in the southwest of Gaza City.
Al-Qassam's fighters targeted a group of Israeli soldiers that had been using a residential home for fortification with an anti-fortification TBG shell, with numerous fatalities and injuries recorded.
Al-Qassam's fighters sniped an Israeli soldier in the vicinity of the industrial area, southwest of Gaza City.
The al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, the military wing of Fatah, announced that its fighters confronted the invading Israeli forces and destroyed their vehicles in the direction of advance west of Gaza City.
The Mujahideen Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Mujahideen Movement, said its fighters launched mortar shells toward the assembly points of the Israeli occupation forces in northwest Gaza, with numerous confirmed casualties resulting from the attack.
Al-Quds Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad movement (PIJ) launched several salvoes of rockets toward Israeli military positions as part of the ongoing struggle in the face of the Israeli occupation.
مشاهد من الرشقات الصاروخية التي قصفت بها #سرايا_القدس المواقع العسكرية والتحشدات الصهيونية ضمن معركة #طوفان_الأقصى #فلسطين_المحتلة #غزة pic.twitter.com/vOG38km7KG
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) February 4, 2024
The confrontations come amid reports that four months into the grueling Israeli genocide in Gaza, marked by what has been termed the most catastrophic war in recent history, the toll has been staggering: over 100,000 individuals martyred, wounded, or missing, and more than half of the population internally displaced.
Amid this backdrop of devastation, the Israeli government has announced intentions to continue its military operations, actions that are anticipated to lead to the killing of thousands more.
On Friday, the Israeli Security Minister unveiled plans to escalate military actions in southern Gaza, specifically targeting Rafah.
Read more: 'Israel' proceeds with buffer zone plan despite intl. prohibition: AP
This city, positioned along the Egyptian border, has become a refuge for the majority of Palestinians fleeing the relentless Israeli onslaughts and massacres throughout the Strip. Rafah, now overwhelmed with makeshift tent cities, has become a sanctuary for families desperately seeking respite from the occupation's violence that has besieged their lives.
“We complete the mission and will continue to Rafah,” Yoav Gallant posted on social media on Friday, claiming that this comes after the occupation army "dismantled" the Resistance in Khan Younis.
Displacement plans
According to "Tel Aviv," the main purpose of the operation is to "take control" of the "Philadelphi Axis," a 14 km narrow strip of land that separates Palestine from Egypt, extending from the Israeli-controlled Karam Abu Salem crossing, linking the Gaza Strip and occupied territories, to the southernmost point on the Strip's coast.
Cairo repeatedly announced its complete opposition to the ground invasion plot, with Egyptian officials warning that this serves the Israeli agenda to expel Palestinians from Gaza toward Sinai.
However, the occupation entity seems to be planning to move ahead with the attack nonetheless.
Read more: Israeli invading forces burning Gaza homes to make Strip inhabitable
For weeks, humanitarian organizations and activists have warned that a military operation in the now densely-populated city would deepen the already catastrophic conditions Palestinians are living in, especially with the spread of famine and infectious diseases due to the Israeli blockade on medicine, food, water and fuel.
“The loss of life we face if Israel goes down into Gaza is huge,” said Bob Kitchen, vice president for emergencies at the International Rescue Committee, a humanitarian relief organization operating in Gaza.