Israeli forces continued their advances into Gaza Sunday as paratroopers and armored units took over the Gaza City neighborhoods of Sheikh Ijlin and Rimal and commandeered Hamas terrorists’ luxury homes as well as parliament and police headquarters. They found multiple weapons and entrances to the terrorists’ extensive tunnel network:
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Much of the once-affluent area was already leveled by Israeli air strikes since the war began last month, but the Israel Defense Forces said it still encountered several Hamas operatives in Sheikh Ijlin and Rimal and killed them while also raiding some wealthy terrorist homes.
The IDF said it found 35 tunnel shafts in the area leading to Hamas’ 300-mile underground network, along with dozens of weapon stashes, The Jerusalem Post reported.
In addition, the IDF’s 7th Armored Brigade and Golani Infantry Brigade successfully took control of Hamas’ parliament building, its entire government complex and its police headquarters, The Times of Israel said.
IDF also captured a Gazan university faculty building they say was used to produce weapons. They also took over a Hamas training base, command center, interrogation rooms, and detention cells.
Meanwhile, they continue to provide further evidence that the Al-Shifa Hospital was used by Hamas as a base of military operations:
OPERATIONAL UPDATE: IDF and ISA forces revealed a significant 55-meter-long terrorist tunnel, 10 meters underneath the Shifa Hospital complex during an intelligence-based operation.
The tunnel entrance contains various defense mechanisms, such as a blast-proof door and a firing… pic.twitter.com/tU4J6BD4ZG
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 19, 2023
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The rest of the tweet reads:
The tunnel entrance contains various defense mechanisms, such as a blast-proof door and a firing hole, in an attempt by Hamas to block Israeli forces from entering.
For weeks we’ve been telling the world about Hamas’ cynical use of the residents of the Gaza and patients of Shifa Hospital as human shields. Here is more proof.
They even allegedly had hostages there:
These findings prove that the Hamas terrorist organization used the Shifa Hospital complex on the day of the October 7 Massacre as terrorist infrastructure. 2/2 pic.twitter.com/2UzlpKrNnv
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) November 19, 2023
Israel condemned Hamas for violating international law by holding the hostages in the hospital:
The CCTV video appears to show a group of men taking an injured man into the hospital. The group, which included armed men, appeared to run through the hospital’s lobby.
Another shot of the footage shows a bleeding man in a stretcher being taken into a different room. The group of men huddled around him.
“In the documentation exposed with the assistance of the ISA, Hamas terrorists can be seen on Saturday, October 7th, forcibly transporting hostages, a Nepalese civilian and a Thai civilian, who were kidnapped from Israeli territory,” IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari said on X. “These findings prove that the Hamas terrorist organization used the Shifa Hospital complex on the day of the massacre as terrorist infrastructure.”
“These findings add to previous evidence presented regarding Hamas’ use of the hospital area as infrastructure for its terrorist activities in a systematic and ongoing manner,” he added.
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As we reported, IDF released a statement Thursday saying they had found the body of 65-year-old hostage Yehudit Weiss near a structure by the hospital. She had been abducted during the terror attacks of October 7, and fighters had slaughtered over 120 residents of her kibbutz, including children, while kidnapping others.
RedState will keep you updated as events unfold.