Israel knows Gaza but does not trust it. The generals know that every battle is different and that the unforeseeable exists. And now, after weeks of raids, they have begun the second phase by “invading” the Gaza Strip. Staying there until “further notice”, a flexible formula that leaves room for everything.
The plan was supposed to provide for a “subdivision” of the strip, separating the northern part from the southern part, to which the population was invited. Once “squares” with irregular sides are created, the military will attempt to neutralize its opponents block by block, neighborhood by neighborhood, house by house.
During the first raids, tall buildings and any structures that could help the guerrillas are destroyed. The testimonies made public say that the “cityscape was distorted” by the cannon fire and Luftwaffe bombs. With the inevitable number of civilian casualties. The action is carried out by tactical groups of approximately 100 to 200 soldiers using Merkava tanks, Namer armored vehicles and D9 armored bulldozers. The latter must remove the palisades, cover all entrances to hideouts and erect barriers in case the enemy resorts to the use of kamikaze vehicles, as the Iraqi insurgents did in Mosul.
The composition of the trains is different and has a low average age. Therefore, it is possible that they will be integrated with elements with greater experience. Together with the “infantrymen” and the engineers, the defense mobilized the best forces of its apparatus. Yahalom, trained to fight tunnels, and Oketz with dogs equipped with cameras to explore a warehouse, the beginning of a tunnel, a house. Then parts of the special forces Duvdevan, Maglan, Egoz and Maktal are tasked with operations on the land front, while the Air Force’s Shaldag and the Navy’s Flotilla 13 cover the respective sectors. Teams only intervene on specific missions to eliminate a high-value target or stage coups. The hunt for executives and managers would have resulted in the elimination of around forty people, although not all of them have been confirmed. Actions were also covered by the Navy, with shipping maintaining the blockade.
Technology, night vision goggles and intelligence should provide commandos with the best possible conditions, but the stories of conflict in the Middle East confirm that nothing should be taken for granted. Also because there is an enemy that has tried to make the most of its entrenched presence.
The approximately 20,000 to 30,000 active militiamen and reserve soldiers aim at the tunnels, at the traps of clashes along inconsistent lines, at possible obstacles, at the railings of houses, at explosive devices placed everywhere and at snipers. According to Arab sources cited by The New York Times, the guerrillas have enough supplies to last three to four months. Their challenge is to hold out and wear down the Israelis in the hope that diplomatic pressure combined with an excessive death toll will lead to a ceasefire. The Netanyahu government reacted immediately: the war would be long.