Israel-Hamas war: Gaza ground raid ‘biggest incursion’ of conflict so far, as IDF ‘prepares battlefield’

Israel sent tanks and troops into northern Gaza overnight, in the “biggest incursion” of the war with Hamas so far, according to the country’s military.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said it carried out a brief ground raid to strike several military targets.

The attack was intended to “prepare the battlefield”, the IDF said, before a widely expected full-scale ground invasion of the Hamas-run Palestinian territory.

The IDF published a video which it said shows the moment its forces moved into Gaza for the raid. In the footage, a row of tanks can be seen heading across the border, firing rockets.

Israel-Hamas war latest: Live updates after Gaza raid

Israeli authorities said its weapons “struck numerous terrorist cells, infrastructure and anti-tank missile launch posts”.

Drone footage also posted by the IDF on X/Twitter appeared to show rockets striking targets and destroying buildings.

Ground forces of the Givati Brigade infantry as well as armoured vehicles, conducted the “relatively large” incursion in a “targeted raid” into northern Gaza.

There were no immediate reports of casualties on either side and all soldiers are said to have now left the area.

Israel’s Army Radio described it as the biggest incursion of the current war so far, which began when militants stormed through southern Israel on 7 October.

Israeli warplanes have also attacked over 250 Hamas targets in Gaza in the last 24 hours, a spokesperson said.

Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said operational headquarters and tunnel shafts were attacked, as well as rocket launchers that had been placed in civilian areas.

‘All Hamas militants are doomed’

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, said the country is “getting prepared” for a full ground invasion and that troops have already “eliminated thousands of terrorists”.

Speaking from Tel Aviv on Wednesday night, he said “all Hamas militants are doomed” and that people are working “around the clock” on Israel’s security.

But he refused to give details of the “considerations” of the ground offensive, saying they are not known by the public and that is “how it should be”.

During the televised address to the nation, Mr Netanyahu added: “I want to make it very clear, the timing of the operation of the IDF is unanimously determined by the cabinet that runs the war along with the chief of the general staff.

“We work in order to secure the best optimal conditions for their next operations.”

The prime minister called on Israelis to “not forget for one moment” those who have been killed in the Hamas attacks, saying there will be a national day of mourning set aside to remember the victims.

He added: “It is like shoving thousands of arrows into our heart, which is bleeding. My role is to lead this country and its people to all-out victory over our enemies. Together we shall fight and together we will win.”

He also urged people to evacuate to the south of Gaza.

Crisis deepens as IDF prepares to invade

Israel has now carried out more than two weeks of devastating air raids, as its troops amassed on the border.

Palestinian militants have also fired rocket barrages into Israel since the war began.

The Israeli military says it only strikes militant targets and accuses Hamas of operating among civilians in densely-populated Gaza.

But the ground incursion last night came after the United Nations (UN) warned it is on the verge of running out of fuel in the Gaza Strip, forcing it to sharply curtail relief efforts in the territory.

Gaza has been under siege since Hamas’s rampage across southern Israel on 7 October.

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Gaza’s health ministry, which is controlled by Hamas, said on Wednesday that more than 750 people were killed over the previous 24 hours, higher than the 704 killed the day before.

The UN has reported this week that the number of Palestinians killed in Gaza since the conflict began could exceed 5,000.

Israel says around 1,400 people were killed during Hamas’s attacks and more than 200 people were taken hostage by the militant group.

Mr Netanyahu has said 7 October was the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust in the Second World War. The Hamas raids have also been compared to the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States in 2001.

Even greater loss of life could come if Israel launches the long-anticipated full-scale ground offensive aimed at crushing Hamas, which has ruled Gaza since 2007 and survived four previous wars with Israel.

US and other officials fear the current war could spill over into a wider regional conflict, dragging in Iran-backed militias in neighbouring Lebanon and Syria.

World leaders and the UN have called for ‘humanitarian corridors and pauses’ to the fighting to get aid in to help civilians.