By Moahmmed Majed
GAZA CITY, Palestine (AA) - Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ armed wing, announced Saturday that its fighters had killed and injured Israeli soldiers during central Gaza battles.
Al-Qassam Brigades fighters “are engaged in fierce battles with the enemy forces that had advanced into the Al-Ja'farawi area east of Deir al-Balah, causing casualties among them,” the group said in a statement on Telegram.
Al-Qassam fighters further said they “lured a Zionist force from the engineering unit into one of the pre-rigged tunnels in the military sites area east of Deir al-Balah. As soon as the force entered the tunnel, it was detonated, resulting in both deaths and injuries among them.”
Earlier in the day, Hamas’ armed group reported that its fighters “had successfully detonated a minefield prepared in advance against several enemy vehicles and engineering equipment in the military sites area east of Deir al-Balah.”
The Al-Qassam fighters observed Israeli aircraft landing to evacuate the dead and wounded soldiers, but without further details.
Additionally, they targeted a troop carrier and a Merkava tank with “Yassin 105” missiles east of Deir al-Balah, according to another statement.
The Israeli army did not comment on the Al-Qassam statements regarding these attacks.
Israel has continued its brutal offensive on the Gaza Strip following an attack by the Palestinian group Hamas last Oct. 7, despite a UN Security Council resolution calling for an immediate cease-fire.
The onslaught has resulted in over 40,300 Palestinian deaths, mostly women and children, and over 93,000 injuries, according to local health authorities.
An ongoing blockade of Gaza has led to severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine, leaving much of the region in ruins.
Israel faces accusations of genocide at the International Court of Justice, which has ordered a halt to military operations in the southern city of Rafah, where over one million Palestinians had sought refuge before the area was invaded on May 6.
*Writing by Rania Abu Shamala