Hamas Declares Group Excluded from Postwar Gaza Plans as “Delusional” After Killing Nine Israeli Soldiers in a Deadly Ambush

Nine Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) officers were killed in an urban ambush by Palestinian terrorists in one of the bloodiest single assaults on Israeli troops since the start of the Gaza blockade, demonstrating the resilience of the Hamas movement in Gaza.

Tuesday’s ambush in Shijaiyah happened when Israeli forces were examining a group of buildings after they lost communication with four soldiers who were shot at by Hamas. Heavy gunfire and explosives attacked the other IDF forces as they attempted to rescue the victims.

Israel-Hamas War of 2023: Complete Coverage

Nine Israeli troops lost their lives on Tuesday, bringing the total number of Israeli soldiers killed in the current 2023 Israel-Hamas conflict to 115. Israel began a ground invasion of Gaza on October 7 in an attempt to drive Hamas out of the coastal stronghold after the terrorist organization massacred over 1,200 Israelis in a historic assault and kidnapped over 250 more.

Col. Itzhak Ben Basat, 44, the highest-ranking officer to die in the ground operation, and Lt. Col. Tomer Grinberg, the battalion commander, were two of the nine people murdered in Tuesday’s ambush.

Health authorities in Gaza report that around 18,600 Palestinians have been killed by Israel’s air and ground assault, with women and children accounting for two-thirds of the casualties. The communities around Gaza City have been reduced to rubble. A little over 1.9 million individuals have had their houses forcibly removed.

Additionally, Israel stepped up its Gaza attack and said that it would not back down in the face of condemnation from other countries. “There is no doubt—we are going to finish this. Despite the immense suffering and the pressure from all across the world, I say this. Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister of Israel, said, “Nothing will stop us; we will continue until the end, until victory, nothing less,” alluding to the international community’s criticism of Israel and the US’s shifting public perception of the country.

Netanyahu has promised to drive Hamas out of the Gaza Strip and has said he would do whatever it takes to accomplish that goal. According to Netanyahu, anyone who “support and finance terrorism” would not be allowed to enter Gaza.

Ismail Haniyeh, the leader of Hamas’ “political wing,” however, said that it is futile to imagine Gaza existing outside of Hamas. Any plans to exclude Hamas from post-war preparations for Gaza, he said, are “delusional.” Without Hamas or the resistance groups, “any arrangement in Gaza or in the Palestinian cause is a delusion,” said Haniyeh.

Palestinians endure hardships.
Palestinians are suffering as a result of the collapse of the healthcare system and humanitarian relief operations. This includes people of all ages, from newborns to elderly people, who are injured, internally displaced and without access to food, water, medical treatment, and other necessities.

According to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operating in the region, the displaced people’s biggest fears are disease outbreaks and malnutrition. The UN issued a warning that meningitis, jaundice, and upper respiratory tract infections were among the illnesses that were spreading more quickly.

Ameen Edwan said to AFP that hundreds of people were encamped on the grounds of the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital in downtown Gaza, where his family was also staying. Rainwater got inside. We had trouble falling asleep. We used stones and sand to keep the water out after searching in vain for nylon coverings, Edwan was cited by the news agency as saying.

The condition in the capital city of Deir al-Balah, according to Ibrahim Arafat, a father of thirteen who left Shijaiyah, is “catastrophic.”