Fighting reported near Shifa Hospital; IDF: Strikes on field commanders ‘significantly harm’ group’s ability to counterattack; IDF chief: Israel can ‘reach anywhere in Mideast’

Israeli forces on Monday pushed further into the Gaza Strip and were reportedly nearing the enclave’s main Shifa Hospital — which Jerusalem says is located above Hamas’s command center — as they continued to target Hamas’s underground tunnel network and military capabilities, after launching intensive strikes against the terror group the night before.

In a daily briefing, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said ground forces were “deepening the pressure on Gaza City,” where Hamas’s main stronghold is believed to be, after they managed to isolate and surround the northern Strip.

He said the IDF killed several Hamas field commanders during overnight airstrikes and operations, which “significantly harms Hamas’s ability to carry out counterattacks.”

On Hamas’s tunnel network, Hagari said combat engineering forces were demolishing each and every tunnel they come across using “different and diverse devices.”

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also touted the IDF’s operations in Gaza over the past day, calling them “very impressive.” Gallant said he approved additional military plans for the ground operation.

“The combination between the air force and ground forces shakes the Gaza Strip,” Gallant said in a video statement.

Commenting on the Hamas field commanders that Israel has killed in airstrikes, Gallant said “some of them were the ones we eliminated a day or two ago and they were replaced by others, and they were also eliminated.”

Gallant said Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar “hides in his bunker and lets the field commanders die.”

Israeli forces on Monday pushed further into the Gaza Strip and were reportedly nearing the enclave’s main Shifa Hospital — which Jerusalem says is located above Hamas’s command center — as they continued to target Hamas’s underground tunnel network and military capabilities, after launching intensive strikes against the terror group the night before.

In a daily briefing, IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said ground forces were “deepening the pressure on Gaza City,” where Hamas’s main stronghold is believed to be, after they managed to isolate and surround the northern Strip.

He said the IDF killed several Hamas field commanders during overnight airstrikes and operations, which “significantly harms Hamas’s ability to carry out counterattacks.”

On Hamas’s tunnel network, Hagari said combat engineering forces were demolishing each and every tunnel they come across using “different and diverse devices.”

Defense Minister Yoav Gallant also touted the IDF’s operations in Gaza over the past day, calling them “very impressive.” Gallant said he approved additional military plans for the ground operation.

“The combination between the air force and ground forces shakes the Gaza Strip,” Gallant said in a video statement.

Commenting on the Hamas field commanders that Israel has killed in airstrikes, Gallant said “some of them were the ones we eliminated a day or two ago and they were replaced by others, and they were also eliminated.”

Gallant said Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar “hides in his bunker and lets the field commanders die.”

“With us, the commanders go at the front of the force, lead and achieve,” Gallant added.

According to the military, Israeli forces operating in northern Gaza located several rocket launchers and more than 50 rockets, located in a compound used by a youth movement and in a mosque.

The IDF published a video of the commander of the Nahal Brigade’s 50th Battalion, Lt. Col. Tomer Sayag, showing dozens of rocket launchers his forces found inside a building used by the Palestinian Scout Association.

Sayag said the empty rocket launchers were aimed at Ashkelon or central Israeli cities. The rocket launchers were later destroyed, the IDF said.

Outside, some 50 rockets — bearing the logo of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad terror group — were found in an underground storage site.

Separately, the IDF released a video of the 460th Armored Brigade locating a number of empty underground rocket launchers adjacent to a mosque in northern Gaza. The video showed the launchers’ electrical wiring running inside the mosque, from which they are activated.

Source: The Times of Israel