Al-Qassam Brigades say they killed 40 Israeli soldiers in past 48 hours

By Murat Basoglu and Safiye Karabacak

GAZA, Palestine (AA) - The Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian group Hamas, announced Sunday that they killed 40 Israeli soldiers and destroyed 44 military vehicles in the past 48 hours.

“During the last 48 hours, the Al-Qassam Mujahideen managed to completely or partially destroy 44 military vehicles on all fronts of the fighting in the Gaza Strip,” they said on their Telegram account.

“Our Mujahideen confirmed that 40 soldiers were killed and dozens of other Zionist soldiers were wounded,” they added.

The statement reported the use of booby traps to destroy buildings, targeting an Israeli field command center, and using mortar shells and short-range rockets against areas where soldiers gathered.

Israel has not yet issued a statement regarding the announcement.

Israel resumed its military offensive on the Gaza Strip on Dec. 1 after the end of a weeklong humanitarian pause with Hamas.

Nearly 18,000 Palestinians have been killed and more than 49,229 others injured in relentless air and ground attacks on the enclave since Oct. 7 following a cross-border attack by Hamas.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stood at 1,200, according to official figures