The military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement Hamas, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, announced on Saturday evening the execution of a complex ambush targeting Israeli occupation soldiers and their military vehicles in the area of Abasan al-Kabira, east of Khan Yunis, in the southern Gaza Strip.
In a statement published via its official Telegram channel, the Qassam Brigades confirmed that its fighters successfully targeted two Israeli armoured personnel carriers (APCs) using two martyrdom-operation explosive devices placed inside the command compartments of the vehicles. The resulting explosions led to both APCs being set ablaze along with their crews.
The statement also noted that Qassam fighters targeted a third Israeli APC using a Yassin-105 anti-armour projectile, and subsequently monitored an Israeli military excavator burying the destroyed vehicles to extinguish the flames, while helicopters arrived to evacuate casualties.
Prior Operations in Deir al-Balah
A few days earlier, the Qassam Brigades had released footage of its fighters targeting Israeli military vehicles that had recently invaded the Deir al-Balah area, in central Gaza.
The footage captured close-range engagements by Qassam fighters as they approached Israeli tanks and APCs, launching Yassin-105 anti-tank rounds at point-blank distance. In one scene, fighters identified an Israeli soldier on a tank, fired directly at the target, and successfully struck it.
In another scene, a resistance fighter advanced within metres of an APC and fired a Yassin projectile, scoring a direct hit.
Israeli Losses and Tactical Withdrawal
The Israeli occupation forces had earlier declared a military assault on the Deir al-Balah area, ordering civilians to evacuate their homes as its troops pushed into the surrounding neighbourhoods. However, the occupation was forced to end the operation after a single day, having suffered significant losses, including the death of a Golani Brigade soldier and the severe injury of others, alongside the destruction of several military vehicles.
Operations in Jabalia: “Stones of David”
In additional footage released by the Qassam Brigades, video documentation showed operations in the city of Jabalia, in northern Gaza, as part of a broader series titled “Stones of David”. These images recorded four separate operations carried out by resistance fighters in Jabalia, affirming the ongoing and organised Palestinian resistance to the occupation’s aggression and its genocidal war, which has continued unabated since October 7, 2023.