Hamas has said that it has recruited thousands of new fighters and boosted its military capabilities amid a deadly Israeli offensive on the enclave.
“We managed to recruit thousands of new fighters during the war, rehabilitate important capabilities, set up ambushes, manufacture explosives and shells, and recycle Israeli enemy leftovers,” Abu Ubaida, a spokesman for the Qassam Brigades, the group’s armed wing, said in a recorded speech.
“Our 24 brigades, along with the resistance factions, fought for nine months, from the northernmost Beit Hanoun to the southernmost Rafah,” he added.
The spokesman said Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu seeks to cover up his failure to achieve “total victory” in Gaza.
“It has become clear to you and the whole world that Netanyahu’s supposed absolute victory is merely his victory in eliminating his opponents and staying in power at the expense of sacrificing your sons,” he added in a message to the Israeli public and families of soldiers.
Over 300 Israeli troops have been killed and thousands wounded since October 27 when the ground invasion of Gaza was launched.
On June 19 the spokesperson for the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, told Channel 13 News that the aim of eradicating Gaza’s leadership was unattainable.
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“This business of destroying Hamas, making Hamas disappear — it’s simply throwing sand in the eyes of the public. Hamas is an idea, Hamas is a party. It’s rooted in the hearts of the people — anyone who thinks we can eliminate Hamas is wrong.”
Flouting a UN Security Council resolution demanding an immediate cease-fire, Israel has faced international condemnation amid its continued brutal offensive on Gaza since an October 7, 2023 attack by the Palestinian group Hamas.
More than 38,150 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 87,800 others injured, according to local health authorities.
Nine months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.
Israel stands accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice, whose latest ruling ordered it to immediately halt its military operation in the southern city of Rafah, where over a million Palestinians had sought refuge from the war before it was invaded on May 6.
