Hamas Claims that it has Captured Israeli Soldiers in an Ambush inside Gaza Strip
Hamas, the militant Palestinian group, said Palestinian fighters captured members of an Israeli force in an ambush inside the Gaza Strip on Saturday; however, the Israeli military rejected the assertions. The spokesman of the Hamas’ armed wing, al-Qassam Brigades, Abu Obaida, declared militants killed, injured or captured Israeli soldiers during the confrontation in the Jabalia refugee camp in the northern Gaza Strip.
In a documented militant excerpt aired by Al Jazeera in the early hours of Sunday, Abu Obaida spoke out about the trapping of a ‘Zionist force’ into a tunnel where the group counter-attacked, leading to the death of several Israelis or their capture. Nevertheless, he failed to give a precise number of soldiers who were involved as well as more information about them, stating that he would make more announcements in the near future.
‘Zionist force’ was compelled to walk into a trap inside a tunnel, according to Abu Obaida of ‘Our Fighters’.
The IDF wasted no time developing a disclaimer in response to the allegations. The case with which a soldier was allegedly abducted does not exist, a spokesman for the Israel Defense Forces declared categorically.
Subsequently, after Abu Obaida’s statement, Al Qassam Brigades posted a video showing fighters dragging an apparently alive man, along with military types of equipment, into a tunnel. The hand-held cameras captured three semi-automatic rifles and other paraphernalia that the Hamas said were from the captured Israelis. Media and Investigators have not established when and where the filming of the video took place.
Abu Obaida’s statement was made at a time when there have been conflicting close-quarters fighting reported in the Gaza Strip for the past weeks, according to both sides’ media. Israel has set off new attacks in the region; tanks and ground troops storm into Rafah and the northern Gaza Strip in early May. Attacks have met stiff resistance from Hamas and other Palestinian militia, especially in the congested Jabalia refugee camp.
The new fighting escalates with higher Israeli air raids, destroying some neighbourhoods in Jabalia and Rafah. Since 7th October, Israelis have been able to shoot dead more than 36,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank, and the majority of them are women and children. During the same time, Palestinians have accounted for more than 1,500 Israelis’ deaths, and many of the latest casualties were the bombing of southern Israel by Hamas on October 7.
The current fighting has intensified, displacing more civilians in the Gaza Strip and causing casualties on both sides. The global community is still appealing for the suspension of hostilities and delivery of assistance to help civilians who are affected by the violence.
That is why the international community is observing the situation closely and fervently wishes for its calming and the beginning of establishing peace in the region.
