NNA – The Israeli ground invasion, initially scheduled for the weekend, was postponed for a few days, primarily due to adverse weather conditions that would have complicated the task of Israeli pilots and drone operators providing air support to ground forces,nbsp;The New York Timesnbsp;reported citing three senior Israeli military officials who provided non-classified information about the operation.
The Israeli military is making preparations for anbsp;forthcoming invasion of the Gaza Strip. Tens of thousands of troops have been directed quot;to take control of Gaza Cityquot;, as per the report.
The military#39;s stated objective is to assassinate the highest-ranking officials within Hamas, the officials added.
They stressed that the upcoming ground invasion is anticipated to be the largest ground operation by quot;Israelquot; since its 2006 war on Lebanon. In the case that the invasion is carried out,nbsp;it would be the first invasion since the 2008 invasion of Gaza where quot;Israelquot; intends to expand occupied territories.nbsp;
This operation is anticipated to pose thenbsp;danger of entangling quot;Israelquot;nbsp;in extensive urban warfare, encompassing battles on the surface and within a complex network of tunnels. Such an offensive has historically been avoided by quot;Israelquot; due to the challenges it presents, involving combat within a narrow and densely populated strip of land inhabited by over 2 million people.
On Saturday, Hamas#39; al-Qassam Brigades released a video warning Israeli occupation forces (IOF) against invading the Gaza Strip. The video titled, quot;This is what awaits you when you enter Gaza,quot; is a stern warning to the IOF as the Brigades put on display some of their defensive tactics and capabilities in case quot;Israelquot; decides to proceed with anbsp;ground invasion against Gaza.
In the same context, Al-Qassam Brigades spokespersonnbsp;Abu Obeidanbsp;underlined, on Thursday, that the Palestinian resistance would utterly crush the Israeli occupation if it dared enter Gaza.
quot;The notion that the enemy could expand the battle to a land invasion will push us to utilize our options that would be very costly for the enemy in terms of manpower and vehicles,quot; he underlined.
Furthermore, there is uncertainty about whether Hezbollah, with its substantial arsenal of precision-guided missiles and ground troops, might respond to a Gaza invasion by opening a second front against quot;Israelquot; along the Lebanese border. —nbsp;The New York Times
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