Article author:
Reuters
Nidal Al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie
GAZA/JERUSALEM — Israel reopened border crossings to Gaza on Monday. The most serious fighting in more than a year has broken out.
At least 44 people, including 15 children, died in 56 hours of violence that began when Israeli airstrikes struck a senior Islamic Jihad commander.
Hundreds more were injured and several homes destroyed in the Gaza Strip. . Palestinian militants have fired more than 1,000 of her rockets into Israel, evacuating residents of southern regions and major cities, including Tel Aviv, to shelters.
"This is a victory," Islamic Jihad leader Ziad Al-Nahra said at a press conference broadcast on pro-Iranian broadcaster Al Mayadeen following the ceasefire late Sunday. Declared.
Israel, however, has seen a significant decline in its Islamic Jihad capabilities.
"Islamic Jihad has undoubtedly taken a severe blow and the recovery will take time," said an Israeli military official, noting the loss of two senior commanders. Plan and execute a business.
"We did not annihilate the Islamic Jihad, nor was that our goal."
Israeli officials said two It said about 20 fighters, as well as one commander, were killed in the attack and destroyed production and storage facilities for a large number of anti-tank weapons and rockets.
"I think they were amazed at our capabilities and our level of intelligence and operational capability," a senior Israeli diplomatic official told reporters.
A spokesman for Islamic Jihad in Gaza said the group may have lost leadership and fighting power but was able to impose conditions on Israel and maintain unity and cohesion. .
"The enemy has set a combat goal to end the Islamic Jihad group, but such a dreamy and delusional goal has failed," he said. "We possess the human element, the human miracle, capable of repairing any ability, no matter how humble."
HAMAS STAY OUT
Recognizing the danger of an escalating conflict, Israel has turned its attention to Islamic Jihad targets to avoid attracting a much larger and more powerful Hamas.
Hamas, a little over a year after an 11-day war broke out in May 2021, killing 250 Gazans and destroying the fragile region's economy, said: It made verbal offers of help to its smaller ally, Israel, but airstrikes continued.
On Monday, the opening of border crossings allowed fuel trucks to power Gaza's only power plant, reducing power availability to about eight hours a day. improved.
The human toll in Gaza, a narrow coastal strip home to some 2.3 million people under blockade from both Israel and Egypt, was nevertheless high.
"War, war, every two years," said Jihad Meqdad, 44, a Gaza fisherman.
There were no serious casualties on the Israeli side, largely due to the Iron Dome air defense system. Officials said they had a success rate of about 96% in intercepting rockets from Gaza. (Reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi and James Mackenzie; additional reporting by Maayan Lubbell and Dan Williams; editing by Alex Richardson)
