The number of deaths in Gaza is rising
Israel identifies “center of power” in tunnel systems
December 20, 2023, 10:12 p.m
When exposing the tunnel systems that have been used by the terrorist Hamas for decades, the Israeli army says it discovered a particularly important section. Meanwhile, Hamas reports that the number of deaths on the Palestinian side has continued to rise.
The Israeli military has published new information about the Islamist Hamas tunnel system in the northern Gaza Strip. The army said that Palestine Square in the center of the city of Gaza played a crucial role. From there, “offices and apartments of the political and military Hamas leadership” are said to have been accessible underground.
Access to the tunnels is via spiral staircases and an elevator that leads up to 20 meters underground. The tunnels are equipped with electricity, water pipes, surveillance cameras and heavy blast doors. “This complex, both above ground and below ground, was a center of power for Hamas’s military and political wing,” an army spokesman said. The information is difficult to verify independently. There have been several times in the past few weeks a discrepancy There has been criticism between Israeli military representations and the published evidence.
Elevators and stairs for descent
After the takeover of an area in the city of Gaza, further details of the “strategic tunnel route” were revealed, the army said. In addition to stairs, elevators also made it possible to descend into the underground system. In some cases, food, water and electrical infrastructure were found. “In this way, Hamas terrorists were able to both escape and remain in their hideouts for extended periods of time,” it said. The tunnel network was reportedly used by the organization’s high-ranking officials, Ismail Haniya, Jihia Sinwar, Mohammed Deif and others, “to control Hamas’s operational activities.”
According to media reports, the head of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, Sinwar, and the head of Hamas’ military wing, Deif, left the northern Gaza Strip during the course of the war. They are reportedly believed to be in the town of Chan Yunis in the south of the coastal area. Haniya, chairman of the Hamas politburo, has lived in Qatar with his family for years.
Hamas: More than 20,000 dead in the Gaza Strip
Meanwhile, Hamas said at least 20,000 Palestinians had been killed in the Gaza Strip since the war began. The terrorist organization’s information office said there were 8,000 minors and 6,200 women. These numbers are also difficult to verify independently. The Hamas-controlled health authority, whose numbers are published almost daily by several aid organizations be assessed as resilient, had not yet announced its own new status on Wednesday. The day before, the authority said the number of Palestinians killed was 19,667. About a week ago, the Israeli army announced that it had killed 7,000 Hamas terrorists so far. If you believe claims made by two Israeli officers at the beginning of December that two civilians die for every terrorist, the figure of 20,000 can be considered realistic.
This relationship is “not good,” said one of the two military representatives, who did not want to be named, in a conversation with journalists. The use of civilians as human shields is part of Hamas’ “fundamental strategy.”
The Gaza war was triggered by the worst massacre in Israel’s history, carried out by terrorists from the Islamist Hamas and other extremist groups on October 7th in Israel near the border with Gaza. Images of massacres at a music festival, for example, and the desecration of corpses and seemingly lifeless bodies went around the world. On the Israeli side, more than 1,200 people were killed. Israel responded with massive air strikes and a ground offensive.