Israeli forces capture key Hamas stronghold in northern Gaza

(JNS) — Israel forces captured a Hamas stronghold in western Jabaliya after 10 hours of fighting, the IDF said on Thursday.

Troops from the 933rd Nahal Infantry Brigade battled Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad terrorists both above and below ground at the site in northern Gaza, known as Outpost 17.

“The troops completed the takeover of the outpost after 10 hours of fighting, during which they eliminated terrorists, captured many weapons and uncovered terrorist tunnel shafts, including a shaft located near a kindergarten and leading to an extensive underground route,” according to the IDF.

Troops also found “significant” operational plans, the army said.

An Israel Air Force fighter jet killed the terrorist based on intelligence from the Israel Security Agency and the Military Intelligence Directorate.

The IDF also reported on Thursday that naval forces attacked a Hamas anti-tank missile launching position from which launches were detected at Israeli forces.

Weapon-making site found next to children’s bedroom

Israeli forces located a Hamas weapons production and storage facility in a residential building next to a children’s bedroom, the IDF revealed on Thursday.

The site for the production and storage of UAVs and weapons was discovered during searches in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood of Gaza City.

Explosive devices, explosives and operational plans were located next to a children’s bedroom.

IDF Maj. (res.) Eliahou Benjamin Elmakayes, 29, from Jerusalem, was killed in action in central Gaza on Wednesday night, the military announced on Thursday.

Elmakayes served with the Combat Engineering Corps’ 8219th Battalion, 551st Brigade.

More than 30 Israeli soldiers have died in Gaza since the start of the IDF ground operation on Oct. 27, and more than 350 have died since the Oct. 7 invasion of the northwestern Negev.

Hezbollah infrastructure hit

IAF fighter jets struck Hezbollah targets in Lebanon on Wednesday night following launches into Israel over the past day, the army said.

Military structures, posts and technological assets were among the targets. 

The IDF also reported on Wednesday night that it had struck a terrorist cell in Lebanon that was operating adjacent to the area of Biranit in northern Israel.

Free flights for evacuees

Israel’s Transportation Ministry will provide free flights between the south and center of the country to evacuees and the relatives of hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.

The planes will operate to and from Ramon Airport near Eilat and Ben-Gurion Airport near Tel Aviv.

Thousands of residents of communities close to the Gaza Strip and Lebanon have been evacuated by the IDF to the Eilat resort city on the Red Sea, and also to the center of the country.

More than 200,000 Israelis have been internally displaced by the war.