The Israeli occupation acknowledges the ferocity of battles in Rafah, located in the southern Gaza Strip. While the newspaper “Jerusalem Post” reported on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, that the commander of the Nahal Brigade in the Israeli army, Yair Zuckerman, stated there are tunnels in almost every house in the city, Israeli Channel 12 indicated that the army is still far from achieving the tasks assigned to it there.
Zuckerman said: “This is a different kind of battlefield in Rafah,” confirming that “the soldiers are fighting above ground and below it.”
He added that the Israeli army, in the past few days alone, had found 17 tunnels in Rafah, noting that these tunnels connect neighborhood houses, forming a large maze, and that the city’s homes are connected to each other through openings in the walls.
Additionally, Zuckerman showed a picture of an open cabinet door, behind which there was an opening in the concrete wall leading to the neighboring house.
Moreover, he mentioned that one of the challenges his forces face is booby-trapping houses in the city before Israeli forces enter them and detonating them remotely. He referred to the incident where four Israeli soldiers were killed last week when a house they believed was clear of explosives was detonated.
He called for giving the Israeli army enough time to complete its mission of disarming the area.
Channel 12: The Army is Still Far from Achieving Its Objectives
In the same context, Israeli Channel 12 reported on Wednesday, June 19, 2024, that after nearly 40 days of fighting, the army is still far from achieving the objectives assigned to it in Rafah.
The Israeli channel stated that Hamas exploits weaknesses along the border with Egypt and has established a significant presence there.
It clarified that Hamas fighters are attempting to attack the forces by taking advantage of their relative advantages, including their good knowledge of the area’s terrain and the tunnel network, and the threat of anti-tank missiles and sniper fire.
The channel also pointed out that the tunnel network that Hamas has managed to build in Rafah is one of the most complex and extensive networks the Israeli army has seen across the entire Gaza Strip.
It added that among the challenges facing the Israeli army are the “rocket launch pits,” where the forces found rocket pits in the area ready for launch, controlled remotely.
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