Israeli media extensively covers Hamas ambush in Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City

By Abdelraouf Arnaout

JERUSALEM (AA) – Israeli media on Wednesday extensively covered the ambush by fighters of the Palestinian resistance group Hamas that left nearly a dozen Israeli elite soldiers killed in the Shejaiya neighborhood of eastern Gaza City.

Early on Wednesday, the Israeli army announced the names of nine troops from the Israeli army's elite Golani Brigade who were killed, as well as four others who were seriously injured.

The Israeli newspaper Maariv described what happened in the Shejaiya neighborhood as "the Shejaiya catastrophe."

The Israeli troops were killed in a well-planned ambush in the Shejaiya neighborhood, the daily said.

It said an Israeli force clashed with Palestinian fighters during which an explosive device was detonated in the face of the Israeli forces, causing casualties among them.

When a Golani Brigade rescue unit was dispatched to support the troops and evacuate the wounded, they entered a building that Hamas gunmen ambushed, resulting in additional casualties among Israeli troops, it added.

Another rescue team was sent to the scene, where more gunfire erupted, followed by explosive charges and grenades.

The Yedioth Ahronoth newspaper also described the incident in the Shejaiya neighborhood as "dangerous," which also resulted in the deaths of members of the Golani's 669 Search and Rescue Unit.

It added that the deadly incident lasted more than two and a half hours.

The latest fatalities bring the Israeli army's death toll in the ground offensive since late Oct. to 115.

Hamas said the increasing number of Israeli soldiers killed in Gaza confirms the scale of loss and failure on the part of Israeli leaders and the army.

"Prolonged presence therein will only exacerbate the toll of casualties and losses, casting the occupiers as bearers of the ignominious tail of failure and defeat," the Palestinian resistance group added.

Israel has bombarded the Gaza Strip from the air and land, imposed a siege, and mounted a ground offensive in retaliation for a cross-border attack by Hamas on Oct. 7.

At least 18,412 Palestinians have been killed and 50,100 injured in the Israeli onslaught since then, according to Gaza’s health authorities.

The Israeli death toll in the Hamas attack stands at 1,200, while around 139 hostages remain in captivity, according to official figures.

*Writing by Ahmed Asmar