The Israel Defense Forces said it was carrying out a new operation against the Hamas terror group in the central Gaza Strip on Wednesday, following intelligence of terror operatives and infrastructure in the area.
The offensive, carried out by the IDF’s 98th Division, focused on the eastern areas of Bureij and the east of Deir al-Balah. The IDF had previously battled Hamas in Bureij in January, but until now, had not operated in the Deir al-Balah area.
The 98th Division had until recently been deployed to northern Gaza’s Jabaliya. Before that, the division fought Hamas in Khan Younis, in the Strip’s south.
The IDF said the operation was launched following intelligence on operatives and infrastructure belonging to terror groups above- and belowground in the area, several kilometers from the Israeli border.
As ground troops pushed into the east Bureij and east Deir al-Balah areas on Tuesday evening, a large wave of airstrikes was carried out, targeting weapon depots, underground infrastructure, buildings used by terror groups, and other sites, the IDF said.
The military said several Hamas operatives were killed in the strikes.
In a separate drone strike late Monday, the IDF said, it targeted a Hamas compound in Bureij based out of a United Nations school.
According to the IDF, several Hamas operatives were gathered at UNRWA’s Abu Alhilu school when the strike was carried out.
It said the strike was “carefully planned and carried out using precise munitions, while avoiding harm to uninvolved [civilians] as much as possible.”
The compound at the school was used by Hamas to plan attacks against troops operating in the Strip, according to the IDF.
The new offensive in central Gaza came as the IDF continued to operate in southern Gaza’s Rafah and in the Netzarim Corridor — just north of Bureij — where the army has maintained a presence.
The IDF said Tuesday that troops operating in Rafah located several “significant” tunnel shafts and caches of weapons over the past day.
Also Tuesday, the military said it had wrapped up a week-and-a-half-long pinpoint raid in Gaza City’s Sabra neighborhood aimed at re-clearing the area of Hamas infrastructure and operatives.
Early Tuesday, combat engineers completed the demolition of a kilometer-and-a-half-long (mile-long) Hamas tunnel in the area, the IDF said, before pulling back to the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza.
The tunnel, 23 meters (75 feet) deep, passed close to the corridor, according to the military.
The raid in Sabra was led by the Yiftah Reserve Armored Brigade.
During the raid, the IDF said the reservists located two major rocket depots, as well as other weapons, including an Igla (SA-18) anti-aircraft missile launcher, considered to be a relatively rare model in the Gaza Strip.
The troops came under RPG fire during the raid, and responded by killing the operatives with tank shelling and by directing airstrikes, the military said.
Dozens of gunmen were killed and some 70 sites belonging to terror groups were destroyed by the brigade, combat engineers, and in airstrikes, the IDF added.
Outside of Gaza in southern Israel on Tuesday, nine soldiers were wounded due to exploding ordnance at the Tzeelim base. Tzeelim is an IDF training base, but amid the war, it has been used to house rear command rooms for the units operating in Gaza.
The military said two soldiers were seriously wounded, another two were moderately hurt and the other five were lightly injured. They were all taken to hospitals for treatment.
The IDF added that it was investigating the circumstances of the blast.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday, the IDF announced the formation of a new counter-terrorism unit that would operate in Gaza border communities, made up of residents of the area who are ex-special forces.
The unit, known as LOTAR Otef — referring to Otef Aza or the Gaza envelope — was formerly established on Monday, per the instructions of Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and “as part of learning the lessons that have emerged from the initial investigations into the events of October 7,” the IDF said.
The unit was to be commanded by a lieutenant colonel reservist and would be subordinate to the Gaza Division.
The IDF said the unit will consist of reservists who previously served in special forces, live in Gaza border communities or nearby towns, and who will be ready for sudden events.
It said that unit members will undergo specific training for “the challenges of the area.”
Hundreds of reservists have already applied to serve in LOTAR Otef and will begin training in the coming weeks, the IDF added.
Also Wednesday, the Israeli government raised the number of reservists the IDF is authorized to call up if needed from 300,000 to 350,000, with military sources telling The Times of Israel that the move was related to expanded operations in the Gaza Strip, rather than the northern front, where Hezbollah has been attacking military positions and towns amid the war in the south.
The IDF said that the cap was increased due to ongoing operations in Gaza’s southernmost city of Rafah, which have taken more personnel than initially planned.
Amid the war in Gaza, the IDF called up a total of 287,000 reservists, although many of them have already been released from duty for now. It marked the largest-ever call-up of reservists in Israel’s history.
The cap was initially set at 300,000, before being raised to 360,000 in the early weeks of the war. It was then dropped back to 300,000, and has now been expanded to 350,000.