Israel has regained control of its border fence with the Gaza Strip, which has been infiltrated by Hamas militants who staged a massive incursion over the weekend and are working to plant landmines, the Israeli army’s chief spokesman said on Tuesday. Fenced areas.
In reports broadcast on Israeli military radio, Daniel Hajari said there had been no new infiltrations from Gaza since Monday.
In an apparent response to rumors that militants had used the tunnels, he said there was no evidence of this, according to Reuters.
On Tuesday, the Israeli military advised Palestinians fleeing airstrikes in the Gaza Strip to return to Egypt.
Lt. Col. Richard Hecht, the chief military spokesman for foreign media, told a press conference, “I know that the Rafah crossing (on the Gaza-Egypt border) is currently closed… and I advise anyone who may go there to do so,” according to a Reuters report.
The Israeli military has announced that nearly 1,500 bodies of Hamas fighters have been found in areas around Israel and Gaza, while it continues to drop bombs.
Richard Hecht said “the bodies of nearly 1,500 Hamas fighters were found around Israel and the Gaza Strip,” adding that security forces had “regained some control of the border” with Gaza.
He added, “We know that no one has broken in since last night…but intrusions can still happen.”
He confirmed that the army had “almost finished” all the population centers in the border area.
On Saturday morning, Hamas launched a surprise operation against Israel across the border fence that killed 900 people inside Israel, according to Agence France-Presse.
Israel has responded with aerial and artillery bombardment of Hamas targets in the Gaza Strip, killing 687 people so far.
About 2.3 million Palestinians live in the Gaza Strip, which is controlled by Hamas and has been under siege by Israel since 2007, according to Agence France-Presse.
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