The Gaza Strip, often referred to simply as Gaza, is a small coastal territory in the Southern Levant that is north of Egypt's Sinai, East of the Mediterranean Sea, and South-West of Israel.
The long-standing ruler of the Gaza Strip is Hamas, which is recognized as a terrorist organization by most Western states and international governmental organizations. Under Hamas, Gaza has been in a state of conflict with Israel. Several other terrorist organizations reside in Gaza and take part in the hostilities, including the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, the Al-Aqsa Martyr's Brigade, the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, the Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine, ISIS offshoots and others.
Gaza is home to 1.5 million Palestinians, largely Sunni Muslim, some who identify as refugees or descendants of refugees from territory now belonging to Israel. Gaza has a very young population, but is very impoverished due to mismanagement, corruption, conflict, and the redirection of taxes and financial aid to warfare.
Due to the conflict between Gaza and Israel, the territory has been under blockade since 2007, though it shares one border and crossing, Rafah, with Egypt. A significant amount of smuggling occurs on this border, often through tunnels.
Gaza is surrounded by defensive structures created by the Israel Defense Forces to counter Gazan terrorist attacks. This includes a sensor fence that rings the perimeter, an underground barrier to prevent and detect tunneling, and a naval barrier to prevent naval frogman infiltration.
Rockets fired from Gaza have presented a major strategic challenge to Israel. Military infrastructure runs through Gaza's cities, including rocket infrastructure. Launch sites, munitions storage, command & control centers, bunkers and more can be found throughout Gaza, much of it underground. In the past, Hamas leaders have claimed that 500 kilometers of tunnel systems are laced throughout the Strip.
Gaza was part of the British Mandate after the territory was relinquished by the UK from the Ottoman Empire after World War I. After the Mandate dissolved, it was seized during Israel's War of Independence by Egypt, and ruled by the Egyptian puppet All-Palestine Government. During the 1967 Six-Day War, Israel captured the territory, and it was not returned along with other Egyptian holdings after the two made peace in the 1970s. 21 Israeli settlements were established within Gaza, but in 2005, Israel unilaterally withdrew from the Strip. In 2006, the Palestinians held legislative elections, but when Hamas won, there was a civil war, and Hamas seized full control of Gaza.
From the disengagement onwards, Hamas and other terrorist organizations increased terrorist attacks against Israelis, and several operations have been fought to quell Gazan attacks, including 2008's Cast Lead, 2011's Pillar of Defense, 2014's Protective Edge, and 2021's Guardian of the Walls.
Guided by intelligence information, Israel Air Force jets struck some 25 terror targets, among which were observation posts, military buildings, tunnels, and sniper posts.
IDSF chairman says his organization warned two years ago of the need to take over Gaza and that it would have been “wiser to launch the attack on Khan Yunis and Rafah first."
The swell on May 8 had reduced to around half a meter off the coast, but winds continued at around 15 knots. It remains to be seen when the floating pier will be in place.
Troops of the 401st Brigade killed terrorists and uncovered terror infrastructure and underground shafts, which the forces subsequently began to destroy.
Even if the attacks don’t harm anyone and not all of them are reflected on the ground the way Hamas describes them, they symbolize the way Hamas wants to wage the next phase of its war.
Avraham was released after 51 days in captivity in a serious, life-threatening condition and was rushed to the hospital via helicopter.
The military added that trucks from Egypt containing humanitarian aid, including, among others, food, water, and medicine, were arriving at the crossing.
Hamas' true motives lie in maintaining power, not military strength. The IDF must shift focus to isolating Hamas, not destroying it, for a more effective strategy in Gaza.
Hamas's control of Gaza should be seen through the lens of a mafia controlling Gaza. The Hamas control of Gaza has many elements of a cartel.
“Americans want the war to end, and we want to win the war. And I hope that those two things can converge,” the Israeli official said.
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