The military assessed Wednesday that a deadly clash a day earlier near Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip was unlikely to be the last attempt by Hamas terrorists to attack troops along the so-called Yellow Line, despite an ongoing ceasefire.
The assessment came hours before US President Donald Trump was expected to announce a move to the second phase of an agreement with Hamas, even without the return of the body of slain hostage Ran Gvili.
After Rafah clash, IDF warns Hamas attacks likely to continue
(Video: IDF)
Six armed Hamas terrorists were killed Tuesday after opening fire on forces operating in the area, the military said. The terrorists crossed the Yellow Line separating parts of southern Gaza near Khan Younis and Rafah, apparently intending to carry out a coordinated attack involving gunfire and explosive devices.
“We scrambled from the outpost and deployed tanks that shelled the terrorists’ position,” said Capt. A., a company commander from the 82nd Battalion who led the operation. “We didn’t leave the area until we made sure it ended six to zero in our favor. They fired small arms, but they were equipped and carrying packs. Our soldiers were sharp and aggressive under fire.”
The terrorists were detected by surveillance units, which dispatched an armored force to the scene. The Hamas cell returned fire, lightly wounding two soldiers with shrapnel, according to the military. After about an hour of fighting, during which forces sealed off the area with heavy fire to prevent a wider incident, all six terrorists were killed.
Capt. A. said some of his soldiers are relatively inexperienced, having been drafted late in the war, requiring constant vigilance even during periods that appear quiet.
“What keeps the soldiers alert is the sense that they are preventing the next disaster, and because of them communities near the Gaza border sleep peacefully at night,” he said, adding that troops regularly train for more complex scenarios than those encountered in the incident.
Most daily activity in the sector, he said, focuses on clearing remaining Hamas tunnels on the military-controlled side of the Yellow Line.
The military said it has not ruled out the possibility that additional terrorists escaped during the incident and is examining whether undiscovered tunnels were used. The terrorists reached within several hundred meters of a military outpost but failed to carry out their planned attack.
The incident was described by the military as a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire. No retaliatory strike had been launched as of Wednesday evening.