The Israeli Defense Forces anticipate their war efforts against Hamas in Gaza will last the entirety of the year and possibly into 2025, an IDF official told reporters on Tuesday.
The Israeli official said Israel remains far away from achieving its goals of capturing Hamas' leaders and disabling Hamas’ military infrastructure, according to a Tuesday Bloomberg report.
After initially beginning their military operation in Gaza’s north, the IDF has been operating in Khan Yunis over the last two months. While Israel has achieved significant military gains and greatly damaged Hamas, they have struggled to control conquered land and still face threats from Hamas terrorists.
A protracted war
Despite warnings that the Israel-Hamas War is set to last longer than initially anticipated, the IDF is reportedly close to defeating Hamas in Khan Yunis, with some estimates that the terror group's ability to fight as an effective collective force could be broken within weeks or less. Of the 4,500 Hamas fighters initially stationed in Khan Yunis, 2,700 have been killed, over 1,000 in close combat, and over 1,700 by tank, artillery, or aerial attacks.
Despite all of these achievements, IDF sources are unsure if they will catch Hamas's leadership and the Israeli hostages they are holding within Khan Yunis. A rising number of IDF officials believe that portions of Hamas's leadership and their hostages may have fled to Rafah, where there are close to 1.5 million Palestinian civilians to hide among. Additionally, another 105,000 Palestinian civilians recently left Khan Yunis for other safe zones, with around 20,000-30,000 remaining in Khan Yunis.
Around 2,000 Hamas fighters are still believed to be in northern Gaza among around 200,000 civilians and are said to be trying to reconstitute themselves as a force while Israel’s government lags in implementing its strategy for transitioning northern Gaza into a post-Hamas area.
Controversial move may bolster war effort
The IDF announced Tuesday that they have been flooding Hamas terror tunnels with seawater to hinder Hamas fighters and destroy infrastructure in a low-cost and safe manner. The move is seen as controversial, with critics pointing to the ecological damage and the potential to kill or injure Israeli hostages held by Hamas inadvertently.
The flooding system is most effective near the Mediterranean Sea and cannot be used in areas where the IDF has concerns that it could harm the Gaza land in the long term. Special IDF analysts also study different kinds of topography to see where it is likely to be most valuable in destroying tunnels.
Yonah Jeremy Bob contributed to this report.