The strikes levelled at Gaza overnight by Israel’s forces are on a ‘scale never seen before’, according to eyewitnesses on the ground. A BBC correspondant has spoken of the horrors witnessed in Gaza, and was speaking as one of the strikes killed the head of Hamas’s Aerial Array a pivotal figure involved in the planning of the October 7 attack, according to the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).
In a series of precision airstrikes, Israeli fighter jets have successfully eliminated Asem Abu Rakaba overnight. Israel said the targeted operation, carried out in coordination with the Israel Security Agency (ISA), has dealt a significant blow to Hamas’s aerial capabilities.
Asem Abu Rakaba was tasked with overseeing and managing a range of Hamas’s aerial assets, including UAVs, drones, paragliders, aerial detection, and aerial defence systems, the IDF confirmed in a joint statement with the ISA.
The statement released by the IDF and ISA reads: “He took part in planning the massacre in the communities surrounding the Gaza Strip on 7 October.
“He directed the terrorists who infiltrated Israel on paragliders and was responsible for the drone attacks on IDF posts.”
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In addition to the targeting of key Hamas personnel, IDF warplanes conducted a sustained campaign against approximately 150 underground targets in the northern Gaza Strip on Friday night.
These operations were designed to dismantle and destroy combat zones, underground combat infrastructure, and other terrorist facilities concealed beneath the ground.
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The series of attacks also resulted in the elimination of several other Hamas operatives.
Overnight on Thursday, the IDF reported another successful operation, which resulted in the assassination of Madhat Mubasher, the commander of Hamas’s West Khan Yunis battalion. Earlier in Operation Swords of Iron, the IDF had already announced the elimination of Murad Abu Murad, who held the position of the head of Hamas’s Air Force.
It marks a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict in the Gaza Strip, with Israel taking decisive measures to degrade Hamas’s capabilities and neutralise key figures involved in the planning and execution of attacks.
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