Israel expands ground operations in Gaza – DW – 12/24/2023

The Israel Defense Force says it is expanding its ground operation in the Gaza Strip as it seeks to eliminate the Palestinian militant group Hamas.

Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari said Israeli troops were engaged in “complex battles in densely populated areas,” which would allow them to further penetrate Hamas strongholds.

Hagari said Israel’s forces have destroyed or confiscated about 30,000 explosive devices, including anti-tank missiles and rockets owned by Hamas, which the United States, the European Union, and others have labeled a terrorist organization.

Israel has achieved almost complete operational control of northern Gaza and is now focusing on the south, Hagari said.

He added that Israel’s soldiers were active in the southern Gazan city of Khan Yunis and had tracked down “terrorist infrastructure,” especially in underground tunnels.

Hagari added that IDF capacity in Gaza would be reinforced in the coming days as destroying tunnels will be time-consuming.

A drone that struck achemical tanker in the Indian Ocean on Saturday was launched from Iran, the Pentagon said.

“The motor vessel CHEM PLUTO, a Liberia-flagged, Japanese-owned and Netherlands-operated chemical tanker was struck at approximately 10 a.m. local time [0600 GMT] today in the Indian Ocean, 200 nautical miles from the coast of India, by a one-way attack drone fired from Iran,” a Pentagon spokesperson told Reuters news agency.

A fire that broke out from the drone strike was extinguished. There were no casualties.

The US military “remains in communication with the vessel as it continues toward a destination in India,” the Pentagon added.

Several ships in the Red Sea and nearby have been attacked in recent weeks by Iran-backed Houthis in response to the Israel-Hamas war.

Iran has also been accused to targeting vessels in the Middle East.

Israel’s military said eight soldiers were killed in the Gaza Strip on Saturday in one of the deadliest days of the conflict.

The ages of those killed ranged from 19 to 30.

The figure brings to 154 the number of Israeli combat losses since ground incursions began on October 27.

Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari wrote on X, formerly Twitter, that six other soldiers were seriously injured in three separate battles.

The US military said it shot down four drones launched from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen, headed toward a US destroyer in the Red Sea.

“These attacks represent the 14th and 15th attacks on commercial shipping by Houthi militants since Oct. 17,” US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a post on X, formerly Twitter.

The US Naval Forces Central Command responded to distress calls from two ships under attack, CENTCOM said.

A Norwegian-flagged, owned and operated chemical/oil tanker reported a near miss of a Houthi drone attack, and a Gabon-owned, Indian-flagged crude oil tanker reported being hit by a one-way attack, the post said.

Two Houthi anti-ship ballistic missiles were also “fired into international shipping lanes in the Southern Red Sea from Houthi-controlled areas of Yemen”, it said.

More than a dozen countries have agreed to stage joint patrols in the Red Sea as part of a US-led operation to secure shipping in the region in the wake of the recent attacks.

More than 200 people have been killed by Israeli strikes in Gaza in the previous 24 hours, the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry said Saturday.

The ministry said the death toll from Israel’s fightback against the Palestinian militant group Hamas over the past 11 weeks had reached 20,258.

Authorities believe that thousands more bodies are trapped under rubble.

Almost all of Gaza’s 2.3 million people have been displaced by the fighting.

Israel denies directly targeting civilians and says the war against Hamas is vital to ensure the October 7 attack can never be repeated.

mm/rc (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)