The al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced on Thursday that its Resistance fighters had targeted a Zionist engineering unit consisting of 12 soldiers as they were preparing to carry out a demolition operation inside a house near the Fida’i Junction in the al-Tannour neighborhood, east of Rafah city in southern Gaza.
The Brigades stated that its fighters struck the unit with two anti-personnel and anti-armor shells, leading to the explosion of the house and causing casualties among the occupation force, with soldiers either killed or wounded.
It added that following the attack, helicopters were observed landing to evacuate the dead and wounded.
The group also reported that its fighters engaged in fierce, point-blank-range combat with Zionist soldiers and military vehicles in the al-Jeneina neighborhood, also in eastern Rafah.
Evacuations in Rafah and media blackout
In a second operation, as part of the Gates of Hell ambushes, al-Qassam fighters successfully targeted an infantry a Zionist unit of seven soldiers with a powerful explosive device near the Omar Ibn Abdulaziz Mosque in the a-Tannour neighborhood.
The group confirmed that its fighters saw body parts of several soldiers scattered at the site.
Following the operations, Zionist military censorship swiftly imposed a blackout on a security event in Gaza involving the collapse of a building and numerous casualties.
Occupation media had earlier reported a “serious security incident” in Rafah in which a building collapsed on Zionist soldiers, causing multiple injuries, some of them described as critical. The wounded were transferred to Barzilai Medical Center in Askalan.
The media indicated that the occupation was facing difficulties evacuating the dead and wounded from the Rafah site due to the intensity of the fighting, as helicopters conducted fire cover operations to secure the evacuation.
The Hadshot B’zman outlet published footage showing wounded soldiers arriving at hospitals following what it described as a “very serious security incident,” the details of which remain under censorship.
The report added, “Hamas has cameras and explosive devices awaiting the army’s forces in Gaza.”
‘Hannibal Directive’ reportedly activated by occupation
Zionist media described the day as “difficult for ‘Israeli; forces in the Gaza Strip,” particularly as the Rafah incident coincided with another event in Gaza City’s al-Shujaiya neighborhood.
Reports indicated an attempt by the Palestinian Resistance to abduct a wounded soldier through a tunnel opening inside the collapsed building in al-Shujaiya, amid a tight media blackout.
Zionist media also reported the activation of the so-called “Hannibal Directive” in both al-Shujaiya and Rafah, a Zionist military protocol aimed at preventing the capture of soldiers, even if it means striking their own positions.
In this context, the Zionist military began firing on its own forces amid fears that troops caught in the ambush east of Rafah could be taken captive by the Resistance.
Second fatal strike targets armored vehicle hours later
Roughly two hours after the first operation, an explosive device struck an armored personnel carrier operating in the same area of Rafah. The blast resulted in the death of Staff Sgt. Frid and wounded four additional soldiers, three of whom were listed in serious condition by occupation medical teams.
The twin incidents highlight the growing intensity of confrontations in southern Gaza, particularly in Rafah, where occupation forces continue ground and air assaults while facing mounting resistance from Palestinian fighters.
Al-Qassam launches ‘Gates of Hell’ operations across Rafah
On Wednesday, the al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, claimed responsibility for several high-impact attacks on Zionist occupation forces. Al-Qassam confirmed that Resistance fighters had targeted a fortified Zionist unit inside a house near the al-Mashrou junction, east of Rafah, using two TBG rockets. The fighters then stormed the site and eliminated the remaining soldiers with light weapons at close range.
The operations are part of al-Qassam’s “Gates of Hell” campaign, which has also extended into Khan Younis.
In a second operation in the same area, al-Qassam Resistance fighters lured a Zionist infantry patrol into a pre-set ambush. The patrol, consisting of ten soldiers and two military dogs, was trapped in a zone rigged with multiple explosive devices. As soon as the soldiers entered, the explosives were detonated, causing fatalities and injuries, which prompted the deployment of helicopters for evacuation, a move closely monitored by the fighters.
Escalating attacks
Two soldiers of the occupation were killed and at least six others wounded in separate attacks during ongoing military raids in the southern Gaza Strip, according to an official statement from the occupation military.
The incidents unfolded in the Jenina neighborhood of Rafah, where confrontations remain fierce between the occupation and Palestinian Resistance groups.
The two soldiers were identified as Sgt. Yishai Elyakim Urbach, 20, of the Combat Engineering Corps’ 605th Battalion, from Zikhron Ya’akov, and Staff Sgt. Yam Frid, 21, of the Golani Brigade’s reconnaissance unit, from Sal’it.
According to an initial military investigation, Hamas fighters fired a rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) at a building housing occupation troops, causing part of the structure to collapse. The blast killed Sgt. Urbach and wounded two others, one seriously and the other moderately.