The Israeli army stated in a statement that forces from the Nahal Brigade and the 7th Brigade, under the command of the 99th Division, had begun operating in the Zeitoun neighborhood. This division had previously carried out the occupation of the Netzarim axis in the central Gaza Strip, in addition to contributing to the extermination operations in Jabalia, Beit Lahia, and Beit Hanoun in the northern Gaza Strip.
The statement claimed that "Israeli forces are working to uncover explosive devices and destroy military infrastructure above and below ground," noting that "the forces attacked and destroyed a booby-trapped building used to store weapons," in an attempt to justify the widespread acts of genocide and destruction perpetrated by the occupation army.
For days, the Israeli occupation army has been carrying out widespread destruction operations in the Zeitoun neighborhood, using booby-trapped robots and explosive belts, leading to the collapse of dozens of homes and the commission of massacres that have forced thousands of Palestinians to flee.
Throughout the Israeli war of extermination, the neighborhood suffered from intense bombardment that destroyed vast areas, while the occupation army occupied large parts of it within what it calls "buffer zones" extending hundreds of meters into the Gaza Strip.
Last Wednesday, Israeli Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir approved the "central idea" of the plan to occupy the entire Gaza Strip, including the operation to attack the Zeitoun neighborhood, which began on Tuesday.
Earlier today, local sources and eyewitnesses reported that Israeli forces carried out systematic demolition operations against Palestinian homes in the southern part of the Zeitoun neighborhood last night and Friday morning, using booby-trapped robots, along with intense artillery shelling and indiscriminate gunfire.
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Sources indicated that Israeli fighter jets carried out intensive fire along the neighborhood's main Street 8, while shelling targeted various areas in the neighboring Al-Sabra neighborhood, causing widespread destruction and heavy property losses.
In this context, local estimates indicate that the ongoing Israeli military operation has claimed dozens of Palestinian lives, including women, children, and entire families who were inside their homes at the time of the bombing, without any prior warning.
On Thursday, the privately owned Hebrew newspaper Yedioth Ahronoth reported that "the Israeli army intends to call up between 80,000 and 100,000 reserve soldiers to participate in its potential operation to occupy the remaining parts of Gaza City."
With American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, through killing, starvation, destruction, and forced displacement, ignoring all international calls and orders from the International Court of Justice to halt the operation.
The Israeli genocide left 61,827 Palestinians dead and 155,275 injured, most of them children and women. More than 9,000 people were missing, hundreds of thousands were displaced, and a famine claimed the lives of 240 people, including 107 children.
