Gaza (QNN)- Israeli newspaper Haaretz has confirmed, citing military sources, that no Israeli soldiers were involved in Tuesday’s abduction of a Hamas official west of Gaza City. The attack was carried out by Israeli-armed militias, while the Israeli military launched extensive strikes in the area to provide cover and facilitate their extraction.
Palestinian sources say Israeli-backed militiamen aided in the abduction of Moein al-Arabid, a senior Hamas internal security official in Gaza City.
In the evening, the Israel military, the Shin Bet security service and the Prime Minister Office announced that the abduction operation was an Israeli one. The Shin Bet noted that "special forces" from the agency carried out the operation, raiding a building and arresting Abid.
Military sources, however, confirmed to Haaretz that no soldiers were at the site of the attack.
Israel’s military said it attacked several targets in the Gaza Strip area “with the aim of removing threats”.
Two vehicles have been struck by drone missiles, it said in a statement.
“The American field hospital has been ordered to evacuate due to the ongoing strikes. The incident is still unfolding and the situation remains highly volatile,” the army said.
What Happened?
At around 10:50 a.m. local time, Palestinians discovered the Israeli-backed unit in the Al-Katiba area, west of Gaza City. The unit was reportedly on motorcycles and inside a truck.
The unit was immediately confronted by Palestinian resistance fighters, prompting the Israeli military to launch a series of attacks on the area in an apparent attempt to protect and extract its forces.
Local and official sources reported that the Israeli military carried out at least 13 air raids on the area.
For approximately 35 minutes, the area came under continuous Israeli attacks involving drones, with three reportedly flying at an extremely low altitude.
The operation took place in one of the most densely populated areas of western Gaza City, where many displaced Palestinians have set up tents along sidewalks and inside displacement camps. The area also contains a field hospital and a preschool, both of which were evacuated during the attack. People were present in the surrounding area as the attacks took place.
Security personnel on the ground told Quds News Network (QNN) that they discovered the Israeli-backed unit, which subsequently engaged in a direct exchange of fire with Palestinian fighters. They said the Israeli military provided extensive aerial cover in an apparent effort to protect and evacuate the unit.
The reported infiltration took place near the American Hospital and a UN shelter in the Al-Katiba area.
The director of Al-Shifa Hospital said that three Palestinians, including two children and a woman, were killed and eight others injured in the Israeli strikes on the Al-Katiba area.
Al-Majd Security reported that an Israeli special forces unit had attempted to carry out an operation in Gaza targeting a resistance figure, but that heightened vigilance by resistance security personnel and other security agencies foiled the mission and prevented it from achieving its objectives.
A source told Quds News Network earlier that the special forces unit involved in the operation was a joint force comprising Israeli military personnel and Israeli-armed militias.
Gaza Government Media Office Director-General Ismail Al-Thawabta confirmed that an Israeli special forces operation had taken place and said that several members of the unit were killed while attempting to carry out the mission.
These militias have been collaborating with Israel throughout the genocide in Gaza. Some members of these armed groups have been linked to ISIS and have a history of drug smuggling and cooperation with extremist organizations.
They have also been accused of looting humanitarian aid under Israeli protection, depriving starving Palestinians of essential supplies and worsening the risk of famine amid Israel’s blockade of the enclave.
Now, they are stationed beyond the so-called “yellow line”, a non-physical demarcation separating Israeli occupation forces from certain areas of Gaza, as Israel occupies over more than 70 percent of the Strip.
