Israel has bombed the Gaza Strip nonstop for the past three weeks.
It intensified its shelling campaign on the enclave throughout the course of the weekend.
“We moved to the next stage of war,” stated Yoav Gallant, the Israeli Minister of Defence.
It was the end of three weeks of Israeli missiles falling nonstop on Gaza, as the ferocity of the assault grew dramatically closer to nightfall.
Over with airstrikes that occurred all over the Strip, which is one of the most crowded places on earth, artillery barrages and tank rounds also raced through the accumulating darkness, each bringing with them their own wave of devastation.
Yoav Gallant, the minister of defence, declared, “We moved to the next stage in the war,” as dawn revealed hundreds of demolished structures.
“In Gaza, the ground shook last evening.”
We launched both above- and below-ground attacks.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel was engaged in a “long war” during a press conference Friday night, referring to it as its “second war of independence.”
“We will fight and we will not surrender,” he continued.
We won’t give up.
Since we are battling for our lives, good will triumph over evil.
Adding, “This is the second phase of the war which has clear objectives to destroy Hamas and bring our hostages home,” he declared that the troops had penetrated “the stronghold of evil.
“He expressed his “heartbreak” for the families of the 229 hostages held in Gaza and vowed, “We will stop at nothing to bring them back.”
Jets struck targets in northern Gaza on Friday night, including areas of Gaza City, as part of the “next stage.”
Additionally, there were strikes near the Al-Shifa hospital, which Israel alleges is a military target because it conceals a Hamas command and control centre beneath it.
‘Bunker buster’ ammunition was reportedly used by the Israeli Air Force to attack Hamas tunnel network.
The missiles’ initial warhead makes a hole in the ground, and the second one goes farther down to destroy subterranean buildings.
Approximately 150 subterranean targets were targeted by at least 100 fighter-bombers.
Israel Defence Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari issued a fresh warning to residents of northern Gaza, advising them to leave right now.
An outage of power, internet, and cell phone service was the most important indicator that the invasion had started below ground.
Then, at around 8 p.m., beneath the nearly full moon and after dark, the column of tanks that had been awaiting the Israeli town of Sderot started to plod towards the same fence that the Hamas death squads had broken through on October 7.
Vehicles carrying troops arrived to join them; unlike on Wednesday and Thursday, they would remain in Gaza rather than leaving before dawn.
Israeli special troops attacked Gaza City’s port at the same time.
With defiance, Hamas blasted rocket after missile at Israel.
If further evidence were required, the rockets’ light reached the tower of a mosque near the launch point, indicating that Hamas will use any structure as a cover.
A high-risk plan was presented to The Mail on Sunday by an Israeli military insider, who stated: “Our ground operation is not a full-scale invasion.”
Because it is “modular,” we can move into a region, leave it, and then come back later with stronger forces if needed.
The modular approach puts pressure on the Hamas leadership with the aim of making the person holding the hostages more distressed and forcing Hamas and Islamic Jihad to stop their psychological warfare and manipulation tactics.
The source admitted that a ground invasion could pose a threat to the hostages.
Some argue that discussions should continue because the hostages’ lives shouldn’t be in danger.
The families of the captives met with Mr. Netanyahu yesterday night to voice their fear that their loved ones might perish in the strikes.
By Friday, it was evident that the Israeli cabinet had decided that the ‘negotiations’ mediated by Qatar regarding the captives were nothing more than Hamas’s ploy to buy time.
“A second school of thought believes that Hamas will never release the Israeli hostages, including the children, women, and elderly, who are actually the only political and effective card left in its hands,” the source continued.
“This is because they need the extra pressure that comes from a ground [assault] into Gaza.”
As dawn rose yesterday, the shelling continued, but it was cut short by a new sound: small-arms and heavy machine-gun fire.
This signalled the start of closer-quarters fighting and the start of a new, bloodier chapter in the war.
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