Israeli Forces Advance on Gaza City Amid Overnight Fighting

Jerusalem, 2 November, 2023 (TPS) -- Israeli military operations in the Gaza Strip were marked with prolonged battles against Hamas terrorists on Wednesday night.

Overnight, terror cells in the northern Gaza Strip fired anti-tank missiles, detonated explosive devices, and hurled grenades at IDF troops. The soldiers engaged with the terrorists, with the assistance of artillery fire and tanks, while directing an aerial strike from a helicopter and a missile strike from a naval boat.

The army said “dozens” of terrorists were killed during the battles.

During a separate ground operation, Israeli troops directed an aircraft in a strike that killed terrorists who fired on the soldiers. IDF reserve troops, while receiving covering fire from the Israeli Navy, coordinated with aerial forces and directed an aircraft in a strike that neutralized an additional terrorist squad which was planning to fire anti-tank missiles toward the soldiers.

On Wednesday, the IDF said it had breached Hamas’s first line of defense and was advancing towards Gaza City.

The IDF said 17 soldiers have fallen since the beginning of the ground war. An overall 332 soldiers have been killed since Hamas caught Israel by surprise with attacks on communities near the Gaza border on Oct. 7.