Fayez Abdulsalam
19 November 2023•Update: 19 November 2023
GAZA CITY, Palestine
The Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Palestinian group Hamas, announced on Sunday that it had killed six Israeli soldiers at zero range in the Juhor ad-Dik neighborhood in the southeast of Gaza city.
The brigades said in a statement that “Al-Qassam members eliminated six Zionist soldiers from a zero distance, in the Juhor ad-Dik area, after attacking them with an anti-personnel missile, and closing in on them with machine guns.”
So far, no Israeli comment has been made on the statement.
The Israeli army has not officially released the total number of its soldiers killed or injured since the ground operation in Gaza began on Oct. 27. While the Israeli media reports conflicting death tolls, some newspapers estimate that 59 soldiers were killed in such attacks.
Earlier on Saturday evening, the Al-Qassam Brigades said its fighters had "ambushed a Zionist force and detonated an anti-personnel device targeting occupation soldiers southwest of Gaza."
It added that "17 vehicles were completely or partially destroyed in all areas of the incursion into the Gaza Strip."
Meanwhile, the Israeli army announced on Saturday that it is expanding its ground operation to the Al-Zaytoun neighborhood east of Gaza City and the Jabalia area north of the Strip, confirming that its invading forces are being targeted by Palestinian fighters.
Israel has killed more than 12,300 Palestinians in its air and ground attacks on the Gaza Strip since the surprise offensive by Hamas. The official Israeli death toll, meanwhile, stands at about 1,200.
Thousands of buildings, including hospitals, mosques, and churches, have either been damaged or destroyed in Israel’s relentless strikes on the besieged enclave.
An Israeli blockade has also cut Gaza off from fuel, electricity, and water supplies, and reduced aid deliveries to a trickle.
Israel has rejected growing calls for a cease-fire until the release of hostages held by Hamas.
* Writing by Ikram Kouachi
