Israeli Operations in Gaza Continue as Hamas Fires From Schools, Mosque

Jerusalem, 9 December, 2023 (TPS) -- Israel Defense Forces troops continued to operate deep inside the Gaza Strip on Saturday as fighter jets struck Hamas assets across the Palestinian enclave.

In one operation, terrorists holed up in a school in the Shejaya neighborhood of Gaza City ambushed Israeli soldiers, who responded with fire to eliminate the threat.

The IDF on Saturday published video of Hamas terrorists in Shejaya beating Palestinian civilians and stealing their supplies.

“The Hamas terrorist group deprives Gaza residents of food and equipment, delivering them instead to its members to satisfy their needs,” said IDF Arabic-language Spokesman Avichay Adraee. “Hamas is the enemy of the people in Gaza.”

The IDF also said Hamas was continuing to fire rockets at Israel from humanitarian safe zones in Gaza.

Meanwhile, Palestinian terrorists on Saturday opened fire on troops from an UNRWA school and a mosque in Beit Hanoun, in the northeastern Strip.

During another operation, Israeli troops uncovered a sniper rifle and ammunition hidden inside a teddy bear at a school.

In another school nearby, soldiers uncovered weapons stashed away in classrooms, some of them inside bags bearing the UNRWA logo.

Also on Saturday, terrorists in Lebanon fired several rockets towards Israel, causing no injuries.

The IDF responded by attacking the sources of the fire.

Israeli troops also employed tank fire to eliminate a terror threat near the city of Metula.

Overnight Friday, Israel Air Force fighter jets responded to rocket fire by striking a series of Hezbollah terror assets in Lebanon, including command and control centers.

Earlier on Friday, the IDF’s 98th Paratrooper Division, under the command of Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, engaged in intense combat in the Khan Yunis area, a key Hamas stronghold in southern Gaza.

“We positioned ourselves in the city center. Within this combat zone, where we are, you can see all this open area, the orchards, the enemy is jumping out at us from the orchards from the tunnels,” said Goldfus.

“We are working methodically, with precision, moving from tunnel to tunnel, house to house and striking the terrorists as accurately as possible,” he added.

Khan Yunis is the second largest in the Strip and is considered the capital of Gaza’s southern district.

It is also regarded as a personal stronghold of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, whose family lives there. Since the war began, the IDF has eliminated two members of the Hamas ruling politburo as well as associates of Sinwar, who live in Khan Yunis.

At least 1,200 people were killed in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on Oct. 7. Hamas currently holds 137 men, women, children, soldiers and foreigners captive in Gaza. Some people remain unaccounted for as Israeli authorities continue to identify bodies and search for human remains.