William Molinié, edited by Philippe Folgado // Photo credit: MOSTAFA ALKHAROUF / ANADOLU / ANADOLU VIA AFP
modified to
9:26 a.m., October 27, 2023
Tanks entered the Gaza Strip this Thursday. A “targeted incursion” in the terms used by the Israeli army. These are the beginnings of a major land operation while maneuvers will multiply in the days to come. So what strategy does the Israeli army intend to implement to confront Hamas?
The Israeli army undertook several “targeted incursions” Thursday in the Gaza Strip, with armored vehicles, according to the general staff. Maneuvers which will multiply in the days to come before the major ground operation, eagerly awaited by the Israeli population since the Hamas attack on October 7.
This maneuver will take time
For this operation to be successful, it could begin at night. In the dark, the IDF has an incomparable technological advantage: night vision means, radars and thermal cameras. When the Hamas terrorists are totally blind in an opaque environment.
The lines of armored vehicles will be preceded by D9 bulldozers, responsible for creating breaches in the security barrier. Then come “Puma”, armored engineering vehicles, responsible for clearing the terrain which could hide minefields. All this would be supported by Merkava IV tanks, recently equipped with cages protecting the upper part of the tank from possible drone attacks.
These targeted incursions have two main objectives: “to create secure penetration corridors to advance, in a second phase, any troops. And above all to test Hamas’s anti-tank defense” according to a military observer. “This maneuver will take time, but it is essential if the IDF wants to invest the Gaza Strip in good conditions,” analyzes a soldier. Especially since Hamas has the advantage of the land, which it has been able to exploit for several years.