IDF intensifies fighting in southern Gaza

Tel Aviv, Jan 5: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have intensified operations in southern Gaza’s Khan Younis area, with reports of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) and Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade of the Fatah joining the Hamas’s military wing Al-Qassam Brigades in the raging war.
Sources in the Israeli Defence Ministry told IANS that the IDF has made major advancements in southern Gaza and added that many terror operatives were neutralised.
The entry of the other Palestinian militant groups has increased the fire power of Hamas.
They are using anti-tank missiles, rocket-propelled grenades and mortars in the intense fighting in Khan Younis, the sources said.
US-based think tanks – the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and the Critical Threats Project (CTP) – have also said that the presence of new groups in the war have increased ammunition strength in the region. It is being said that top Hamas leaders Mohammed Deif and Yahya Sinwar are believed to be in hiding in the tunnel network of Khan Younis.
Meanwhile, the Israeli Hostage and Missing Families Forum together with the Israeli Cycling Federation and Israel – Premier Techwill organise a mass solidarity ride around the world to mark the 100th day of the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack. Tens of thousands of cyclists are expected to take part in the ride on January 14 and in special cycling events held simultaneously at the Velodrome in Tel Aviv and several major capitals across the globe.
Chris Froome, the legendary four-time Tour de France winner and considered one of the greatest cyclists in history, has joined the campaign. (IANS)