The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced that it has dismantled approximately half of Hamas’s fighting force in Rafah, killing at least 550 gunmen as operations in Gaza Strip’s southernmost city continue. The IDF’s 162nd Division has been engaged in combat in Rafah for over 40 days, beginning with the capture of the city’s eastern outskirts and the border crossing with Egypt in early May. The second phase of the operation, about a week and a half later, saw the division secure the Brazil neighborhood.
In the third phase, the IDF took control of the entire Egypt-Gaza border, known as the Philadelphi Corridor, and advanced into the city’s northwestern Tel Sultan neighborhood.
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According to the IDF, 550 gunmen have been confirmed killed in the Rafah operation, with many more likely killed in strikes on buildings and tunnels. Additionally, an unknown number of operatives fled the area as the offensive began.
Of Hamas’s four battalions in Rafah, the Yabna (South) and East Rafah battalions are nearly dismantled, while the Shaboura (North) and Tel Sultan (West) battalions have been significantly weakened.
Along the Philadelphi Corridor, the IDF discovered hundreds of rockets, including dozens of long-range projectiles aimed at central Israel. More than 200 tunnel shafts leading to numerous underground routes were also found.
The IDF identified at least 25 long tunnels reaching the border with Egypt, some possibly extending into Sinai for weapon smuggling. Further investigations are ongoing.
The IDF has achieved “complete operational control” over Rafah’s Brazil and NPK neighborhoods, with the latter being a major Hamas stronghold. Dozens of gunmen were killed in tunnels in this area.
The 162nd Division has suffered 22 casualties during the Rafah operations, including eight soldiers killed in an armored vehicle blast on Saturday.
In Rafah’s Tel Sultan neighborhood, soldiers from the 401st Armored Brigade engaged in close-quarters combat, killing several gunmen and destroying a weapons depot from which an anti-tank missile had been fired.
Residents reported heavy IDF advances into central and western Rafah under continuous ground and air fire. Armed groups led by Hamas engaged in close-range combat in Shaboura, amidst nonstop explosions and gunfire.
Meanwhile, IDF operations continued in the Netzarim Corridor in central Gaza Strip, resulting in the deaths of several armed operatives and the demolition of terror group buildings.
In Gaza City, medics at Al-Ahli Hospital reported five fatalities from airstrikes, with tank shelling in the southern Zeitoun neighborhood. An airstrike also hit Bureij refugee camp in central Gaza.
Mahmud Basal, spokesman for Gaza’s civil defense agency, noted relative calm in other parts of Gaza despite deadly strikes in Gaza City overnight.
Additionally, Israel criticized the United Nations for not fully utilizing a new route designed to facilitate aid flow into Gaza. This follows the IDF’s announcement of a “tactical pause” in daytime fighting along key roads leading from a main goods crossing to a north-south highway.
