In the first significant pullback in troops since the war began in the Gaza Strip in October, the Israeli military announced today that it will withdraw thousands of its troops from the besieged Gaza Strip.
In the past few years, the United States has increased pressure on Israel to shift to a more low-intensity war, which will result in fewer casualties among civilians, as a result of its principal ally, Israel.
It is important to note that fierce fighting continued in the southern city of Khan Younis as Israel reaffirmed its commitment to continue fighting until its goals have been achieved, including the destruction of Hamas, a Palestinian organization that is believed to have killed roughly 1,140 people during an attack on southern Israel on October 7.
It was announced on Monday that the military is taking out five brigades of troops in order to train and rest for several days outside the enclave, according to a statement.
According to Army spokesperson Daniel Hagari, during a briefing on Sunday where the announcement of the troop withdrawal was first made, the decision does not mean that the war has entered a new phase.
It is necessary to fight for a prolonged time in order to achieve the objectives of the war, and as a result, we are preparing in this regard.
Is there a new stage on the way?
The changes in Israeli troop numbers may be a result of US pressure and could signal a shift in Israel’s approach to the war in the future, according to former brigadier general Shlomo Brom, who was previously in charge of strategic planning in the Israeli military.
In the words of Brom, “the war will not end anytime soon.”. In Brom’s words, there is a beginning to a new kind of warfare.
It has been said by Israeli officials that the war would be waged in three main stages. First, intensive shelling took place during which access routes for ground forces were cleared as well as encouraging civilians to evacuate the area. A second incident occurred on October 27 when the Israeli Navy began invading the Gaza Strip.
In spite of the fact that Palestinian gunmen continue to ambust them from hidden tunnels and bunkers, as tanks and troops have now overrun much of the Gaza Strip and have largely asserted control, the military is now advancing to the third stage. According to a senior Israeli official, who declined to be named due to the sensitive nature of the matter, the military has reached a third stage.
“It will take at least six months to accomplish this, and will involve intensive mopping-up missions against the terrorists in the process. In reference to a Gaza district ravaged by fighting, the official was quoted as saying, “No one is talking about doves of peace being flown from Shujayea.”.
Additionally, on Monday, the US announced that it would be taking back as part of its military operations in the eastern Mediterranean a strike group consisting of an aircraft carrier and its accompanying ships in place of the strike group.
Since the Israeli assault on Gaza started on October 7th, at least 21,978 Palestinians have been killed according to Palestinian health authorities.
There were at least 172 deaths in the Israeli military operations since the ground operations started in late October, 18 of which were caused by friendly fire, and 11 of which were caused by malfunctions in weapons and equipment.
Fighting across international borders is becoming increasingly common
Israeli troops have been engaged in cross-border battles with Lebanese armed groups Hezbollah and Hamas since the outbreak of the war.
It was reported on Monday by Hezbollah on Telegram that three of its fighters had been killed in southern Lebanon while fighting for Hezbollah. They said that although there was no specific information about how they were killed, the groups said that they “martyred on the road to [liberate] Jerusalem when they were killed”.
Several Israel-based missiles have been shot down in Lebanon, including “military sites” that Hezbollah was using as a base of operations, the Israeli military said.
More than 100 Hezbollah fighters were reported dead by Hezbollah and security sources, according to the Reuters news agency, while nearly 20 civilians, including many children and the elderly, also lost their lives.
That news provided by timenews.
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