Hamas and Hezbollah rocket fire and IDF airstrikes intensified on Tuesday as the IDF continued to incrementally move toward greater readiness for a counter-invasion of Gaza.
Rockets from Gaza swept over the Gaza corridor and Ashkelon throughout the day, achieving some hits.
An especially heavy rocket barrage was launched from Gaza on Ashkelon after Hamas armed wing spokesman Abu Ubaida told residents of Israel’s southern port city to evacuate the area by 5:00 p.m. on Tuesday, without giving any further details.
Magen David Adom reported that paramedics headed to the scene following reports of rockets landing on homes in the city.
There were also rocket attacks on the Tel Aviv and central Israel areas, though at a much lower volume.
The IDF has still not issued any statistics on how many rockets have been fired since the first day of the war and has put out zero statistics on the effectiveness of Iron Dome, though anecdotally the number of reports of civilians harmed by Hamas rockets has still been relatively low.
Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Tuesday said that he had ordered the IDF “to remove all of the stops,” in unleashing the military’s full power against Hamas.
On Monday, a senior diplomatic source had implied that the IDF would be issuing fewer specific warnings before its attacks on Hamas members so as not to lose the element of surprise, while general warnings to evacuate certain neighborhoods would still be issued.
Over 2,300 targets attacked
As of Tuesday at 5:00 p.m., the Israel Air Force had attacked 2,329 targets in Gaza in its counter-attack following Hamas’ Saturday invasion.
While the IDF said that 1,034 of those targets were serious impact targets, still a very small percentage of Hamas’ full pool of fighters and rockets have been eliminated.
The world is anticipating the IDF’s expected ground invasion will make a larger impact on those issues.
Regarding those 2,329 targets, 30 helped assure IDF air dominance, 45 helped assure IDF maritime dominance, 11 reduced Hamas’ intelligence apparatus, 541 related to future ground maneuvers, 122 related to command and communications, and there were many other categories.
There were 166 attacks in Rimal, 243 in Beit Hanun, 179 in Shajaiya, 300 in al-Farkan, 133 in Khan Yunis, and 13 in Daraj Tufah.
Also, on Tuesday, the IDF announced it had killed Hamas’s finance minister and one of its high command officials in charge of a mix of political and diplomatic issues.
According to the military, Jawad Abu Shamala handled Hamas’ terror financing both within and outside Gaza. This attack came after multiple attacks on Hamas’ main banks in recent days.
Zakariya Abu Moammar was the other official killed. He was involved in long-term strategic decisions as well as coordination with other terror groups.
In addition, the IDF added that he was close to Hamas Gaza Chief Yahya Sinwar.
While the number of Israelis killed did not jump much beyond the 900 level reached late Monday this did not mean that there were no additional Hamas invasion attempts into the Gaza corridor.
IDF Chief Spokesman Daniel Hagari said that Maglan special forces and IDF Unit 52 had killed invaders in various areas, including near Zikim.
He also said that IDF Unit 101 had killed a number of terrorists attempting to invade in other areas.
The IDF estimated the number of Hamas terrorists killed since Saturday at 1,500, including 103 killed in Kibbutz Be’eri after a meticulous body count.
Referring to the airstrikes, Hagari said, “This is only the start of the collapse,” of Hamas.
In the North, Hezbollah fired 15 rockets into Israeli territory in multiple exchanges in which the IDF returned fire with a mix of artillery, tank fire, and airstrikes.
Sirens sounded in the border communities of Matzuva, Betzet, Shlomi, Hanita, Achziv and Liman in the western Galilee area. A rocket was reported to have fallen in Shlomi, but no injuries or damage were reported.
An IDF helicopter attacked another Hezbollah observation post in southern Lebanon after the terrorist organization launched an anti-tank guided missile at Israeli forces.
At one point, Israeli forces conducted scans along the border amid fears of a terrorist infiltration from the Lebanese border.
Residents of Israeli towns located four kilometers or less away from the border were asked to shelter in their homes. At around 7:00 p.m., the threat was lifted.
Residents in the border city of Metula were asked to evacuate amid “escalating tensions” in the northern theater.