Hamas “has lost control of Gaza” and its fighters are “fleeing south,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said Monday after more than five weeks of war with the Palestinian Islamist movement.
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Civilians “loot Hamas bases. They no longer believe in the government (Hamas, editor’s note) that is in power in the small Palestinian territory, which is under relentless Israeli shelling and is in a catastrophic humanitarian situation, the minister also assured a video message that was broadcast by several television channels.
In response to Hamas’s unprecedented October 7 attack on its soil, Israel has been bombarding Gaza relentlessly from the air, land and sea for more than five weeks.
Since the end of October, its ground troops have been advancing in the north of the narrow territory and fighting with Hamas fighters is now taking place in the heart of Gaza City, where tens of thousands of civilians still remain.
The Israeli army reports daily new Hamas military infrastructure dismantled in Gaza, discovered weapons caches, tunnels and “commanders” of the Palestinian movement, designated a terrorist organization by the European Union and the United States, killed in operations.
According to Israeli military sources quoted in several media outlets on Monday, Hamas had about 30,000 fighters in the Gaza Strip before October 7, divided into five regional brigades, 24 battalions and about 140 companies.
According to the same sources, Hamas battalions in the northern Gaza Strip have suffered “significant setbacks” in recent weeks and many of them are now struggling to organize their attacks due to the deaths of their commanders.
Many experts have warned of the dangerous face-off between the army and Hamas in the devastated Gaza Strip, exposing both camps to a period of high-risk urban fighting.
International humanitarian organizations are louder in calling for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip, where drinking water, energy and medicine are lacking and humanitarian aid is inadequate.
According to the Hamas Health Ministry, Israeli bombings have killed 11,240 people, mostly civilians, including 4,630 children, in the Gaza Strip since October 7.
According to the latest official Israeli figures, the Hamas attack claimed around 1,200 lives on the Israeli side, mostly civilians, who were killed on October 7th.