Members of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Martyr Brigades (Al Jazeera)

Yedioth Ahronoth reported that the Israeli army has not yet set foot on 80% of the Gaza Strip, and that ground operations that began more than a month ago have been concentrated in some areas and neighborhoods in the northern Gaza Strip.

Achieving the goals of the war by eliminating the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) is still far from being achieved and requires overcoming many challenges.

The newspaper also noted that the Israeli army has not yet taken control of the town of Jabalya, nor has it reached the Shejaiya neighborhood, where it suffered heavy losses and fought fierce fighting in the 2014 war.

The newspaper also confirmed that the Qassam Brigades still controls strongholds in the northern Gaza Strip, despite statements by Israeli military commanders that Hamas has lost control there.


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In a related context, an Israeli military analyst said that Hamas "popped Israel's eye" at the scene of handing over prisoners to the Red Cross from the heart of Gaza City on Sunday evening, in a surprise show of force by the resistance.

Amir Bouhbut, a military analyst at the Israeli news website Walla, wrote, "Footage distributed by Hamas showing the release of the abductees near the resistance monument in the city raises questions about the level of Israeli control over the area and the level of commitment to continue the operation."

In his article "A Finger in the Eye of Israel: The Video That Revealed the Real Owner," the author said that the scenes broadcast by the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, provoked the indignation of the Israelis, and torpedoed their army's narrative in recent days that it had taken control of Gaza City and eliminated the movement's fighters there.

"In front of hundreds of supporters and amid chants, the hostages were released last night in the third phase near the resistance monument in Gaza City, there is a statue of a hand carrying Israeli army tablets, in reference to the two soldiers Hadar Goldin and Oron Shaul, whose bodies have been held in the Gaza Strip since 2014," Bouhbut said.

In the face of these scenes, he asked, "Who is the real owner in Gaza?" The occupation army applied a scorched earth policy and caused massive destruction in the northern Gaza Strip before storming the area, only to later announce that it controlled it.

If the prisoner exchange takes place in its fourth phase, scheduled for Monday evening, between the two sides, the total handed over by Hamas will be 50 prisoners in addition to Thai detainees, leaving about 190 prisoners according to Israeli estimates, including officers, soldiers, police and intelligence personnel.

On October 239, Hamas captured about 24 Israelis, and began on the 7th of this month to exchange part of them with the occupation forces, which hold in their prisons more than <>,<> Palestinians, including children and women.

Source : Al Jazeera + Agencies + Israeli Press