(JNS) Israeli forces on the ground in Gaza continue to find Hamas terrorist infrastructure located within civilian sites, including the Al-Quds University and the Abu Bakr Mosque, the Israel Defense Forces said on Monday.
Israeli forces uncovered a section of the mosque housing a large number of explosive devices and flammable materials, according to the IDF. Soldiers also confiscated dozens of weapons, military equipment, and Hamas operational plans.
תשתיות הטרור של חמאס הוקמו במכוון בתוך מבנים אזרחיים, כמו אוניברסיטת ׳אל קודס׳ ומסגד מרכזי בעזה ׳אבו בכר׳ בו חשפו הכוחות מרחב חבלה גדול עם חומרי תבערה ומטענים רבים. במהלך הפעילות, החרימו הכוחות עשרות נשקים, ציוד לחימה ותכניות אופרטיביות של ארגון הטרור חמאס >> pic.twitter.com/4jncrTpBza
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) November 13, 2023
IDF troops also found a "large number of weapons" inside the children's room of the home of a senior Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorist.
During operational activity in Beit Hanoun, IDF troops located a tunnel shaft, Hamas intelligence materials and weapons.
IDF Spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said during his daily press briefing on Sunday night that "troops continue to strike the Hamas strongholds in the heart of the Shati Camp and to deepen the raids in the heart of Gaza City."
תמונות מהפעילות הקרקעית: pic.twitter.com/CaO189HFzL
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) November 13, 2023
Hagari also said that a total of 20 Hamas terrorists have been arrested and brought to Israel for questioning, including terrorists involved in the Oct. 7 massacre of 1,200 Israelis in the northwestern Negev. The arrests were made in cooperation with IDF troops, coordinators from the Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet), and the Military Intelligence Directorate's Unit 504.
The names of two more IDF soldiers who fell in battle in the northern Gaza Strip were published on Monday. They are Major Issachar Natan, 28, from Kiryat Malachi; and Sgt. Itay Shoham, 21, from Rosh Ha'ayin.
At least 48 IDF soldiers have been killed in action in Gaza and at the Lebanon border since the start of the Gaza ground operation on Oct. 27, and 363 Israeli soldiers have died since the war started.
As Israeli forces close in on the main Hamas headquarters located underneath Shifa Hospital in Gaza City, the United States has conveyed to the IDF their concern about civilians getting caught in the crossfire.
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan told the CBS News program “Face the Nation" on Sunday that the United States "does not want to see firefights in hospitals where innocent people, patients receiving medical care, are caught in the crossfire. And we’ve had active consultations with the Israel Defense Forces on this."
Israel has publicized safe evacuation routes from Gaza's largest medical complex and is assisting in the evacuations, including of infants. The IDF has provided documentation of their attempt to provide fuel for the hospital, which was blocked by Hamas.
“In the last 24 hours, the IDF delivered 300 liters of fuel to the Shifa Hospital's doorstep, yet the fuel remains untouched after Hamas threatened hospital staff," IDF International Spokesman Lt. Col. (res.) Peter Lerner tweeted on Monday morning.
“In the last 24 hours, the IDF delivered 300 liters of fuel to the Shifa Hospital's doorstep, yet the fuel remains untouched after Hamas threatened hospital staff.”
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 13, 2023
The IDF is doing everything it can to mitigate harm to Gazan civilians and increase humanitarian aid. Our war is… pic.twitter.com/Z1maLsnwBQ
Kan News on Sunday also showed video documentation of Hamas terrorists brutally beating Gaza civilians attempting to take food from a humanitarian aid truck in southern Gaza last weekend. The Hamas terrorists instead took the food for themselves.
#BREAKING
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) November 12, 2023
Exclusive documentation: Hamas terrorists brutally beat Gaza civilians and prevent them from taking food from a humanitarian aid truck@eliorlevy | #KanIsraelstory pic.twitter.com/PXHsNECt6I
