IDF Strikes Khan Younis After Terrorists Fire 20 Rockets

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Israeli troops carried out strikes on terror targets in Gaza after terrorists fired 20 rockets at Israel on July 1, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said. The rocket fire from southern Gaza’s Khan Younis, the hometown of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, was the largest attack of its kind in seven months. The IDF previously carried out operations against terror networks in Khan Younis between December 2023 and April 2024. The latest Israeli strikes “took precautionary measures to mitigate harm to uninvolved civilians, including by enabling civilians to evacuate from the area,” the IDF said, adding: “The Hamas terrorist organization continues to systematically violate international law while using civilian infrastructure and the civilian population as human shields for its terrorist activities against Israel.”

Expert Analysis

“Hamas returned to Khan Younis after the IDF left the area in April. Hamas has shifted forces from Rafah — where it had thousands of fighters prior to the IDF operation to secure Gaza’s border with Egypt in May — in order to move them to other parts of Gaza. The fact that Hamas has returned to Khan Younis illustrates the difficulty in rooting out this terrorist organization.” — Seth J. Frantzman, FDD Adjunct Fellow

“Despite being under intense military pressure and sustaining significant losses, Hamas’s reliance on smaller terrorist organizations to support its efforts highlights the effectiveness of its guerrilla warfare strategy. This tactic, which has proven successful in previous conflicts, has forced Israel to attack multiple Palestinian armed organizations, making it more challenging for the Israeli military to destroy the terrorist network in the Gaza Strip.” — Joe Truzman, Senior Research Analyst at FDD’s Long War Journal

Hamas Recruiting New Terrorists in Gaza

The IDF continues to carry out raids in parts of Gaza aimed at reducing the ability of terrorists to return and repair terrorist infrastructure. The recent raid in northern Gaza’s Shujaiya revealed that Hamas is recruiting new members. “The IDF found Hamas has managed to rehabilitate itself not only militarily in the area, but also financially. The terrorist organization has managed to resume paying salaries to its operatives and recruited hundreds of new terrorists, some of whom are now confronting IDF forces during their current operation in the neighborhood,” Israel’s Ynet reported. The recruitment of new terrorists, after almost nine months of war, illustrates the abiding challenge of defeating Hamas in Gaza and replacing it as a governing authority.

Related Analysis

“IDF Uncovers Hamas Hideout, Facilities in Medical Clinic and UNRWA School,” FDD Flash Brief

“Israel Asks Residents to Evacuate Gaza’s Shujaiya Neighborhood Amid Renewed Fighting,” FDD Flash Brief

“IDF Discovers ‘There is Almost No Home Without a Tunnel’ in Rafah,” FDD Flash Brief