Israel declares "destroying" Hamas in Rafah

According to The Times of Israel, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it had defeated about half of Hamas's forces in the southernmost city of the Gaza Strip, killing at least 550 of the movement's gunmen there.

The IDF announced on June 17 that two of the four battalions of the Hamas armed movement in Rafah, the southernmost city in the Gaza Strip, were almost completely "destroyed", while the remaining ones had their combat capabilities somewhat reduced.

The IDF claims to have neutralized 50% of Hamas militants in the city of Rafah. Photo: Getty

Since the start of the Rafah operation more than a month ago, the IDF has neutralized at least 550 Hamas militants, many of whom were killed in raids on buildings and tunnels in the city. An unknown number of militants fled Rafah before the Israeli army launched its operation there.

Along the Philadelphia Corridor, a 14-kilometer buffer zone separating the Gaza Strip from Egypt, the IDF has discovered hundreds of rockets, including dozens of long-range rockets targeting Israeli territory, as well as more than 200 entrances to vast underground tunnel systems. At least 25 long tunnels lead toward the border with Egypt, some of which likely lead to the Sinai Peninsula and are used by Hamas to smuggle weapons into the Gaza Strip.

In addition to the Philadelphia Corridor, the IDF also announced that it had taken full control of the Brazil and NPK areas inside Rafah city, near the Shaboura and Yabna refugee camps. NPK is considered an important stronghold of Hamas. The IDF announced that it had destroyed Hamas's combat system and killed dozens of Hamas fighters in the intricate tunnels there. The IDF's 162nd Division was the main unit in the recent combat operations in Rafah. Currently, Hamas has not commented on the information released by the IDF.

The international community has repeatedly called on Israel not to launch a ground military operation against Rafah, a city that is home to more than a million refugees. However, the Israeli army entered the city in early May 2024 and caused many civilian casualties.

The conflict in the Gaza Strip is causing heavy casualties among Palestinian civilians. Photo: AP

Israeli media reported that the 162nd Division fought in Rafah for more than 40 days. First, it controlled the eastern suburbs of the city and the Rafah border crossing between Gaza and Egypt, then over a week later it took over the Brazilian area. In the third phase of the operation, the IDF controlled the entire Gaza-Egypt border, and advanced deep into the Tel Sultan area northwest of Rafah.

Regarding the conflict in the Gaza Strip, many experts say that US President Joe Biden's views on the Israel-Hamas conflict are considered one of the most worrying points. The White House boss has so far defended Israel's campaign to attack the Gaza Strip to destroy Hamas.

The US president has recently increased his criticism of Prime Minister Netanyahu over civilian casualties in the war and tried to draw a "red line" for Israel, but the US has still blocked UN efforts to call for a quick end to the fighting.

As the war in the Gaza Strip drags on, former President Donald Trump has more motivation to promote his "America First" policy in the race for the White House, breaking the broad diplomatic foundation that President Joe Biden has worked hard to establish throughout his term.

In Europe, disagreement with the US on the issue of Israel has increased, with some countries even angering Tel Aviv by recognizing a Palestinian state.

White House officials have so far tried to reduce the political risk for President Joe Biden by emphasizing his efforts to advance a peaceful framework for the conflict. Indeed, much of Europe has publicly supported the US in negotiating a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, seeing it as crucial to stabilizing the region.

Source: https://congthuong.vn/chien-su-israel-hamas-ngay-1862024-israel-tuyen-bo-pha-huy-hamas-o-rafah-326825.html