The Israeli occupation army announced that the “98th” Division began a military operation east of Bureij and east of Deir al-Balah in the central governorate of the Gaza Strip, in conjunction with the continuation of the activities of the “162nd” and “99th” Divisions in the south and center of the Strip.
In this context, the military and strategic expert, Colonel Hatem Karim Al-Falahi, says that the military operation was preceded by intense air and artillery bombardment, before two brigades of the “98th” Division penetrated east of Al-Bureij and Deir Al-Balah, hoping to advance a kilometer.
According to his analysis of the military scene in Gaza, Al-Falahi explains that there are some areas in that border region outside Israeli control, and the Israeli forces are seeking to occupy them within the buffer zone that they intend to establish along the border with the Gaza Strip.
The military expert expected that the military operation would be limited, but he did not rule out its expansion if the Israeli mechanisms went ahead with the incursion under the pretext of “destroying the capabilities of the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and the remaining brigades in the region.”
The previous Israeli operation in the region had stopped – according to Al-Falahi – after the combined raid operation, which led to the killing of 21 Israeli soldiers in late January, and the occupation army described it as the most difficult since the beginning of the ground invasion of the Strip on October 27, 2023.
Regarding the occupation’s options in the coming period, Al-Falahi believes that they are not many. Either deal with the northern front after ending the battle of Rafah in the south, or remain in the Gaza Strip and return to areas that the occupation army had previously entered and study alternatives to Hamas, stressing that the occupation does not have a clear political and military vision.
Recruitment of reserve forces
Regarding Israel’s need to call in additional reserve forces, the military expert indicated that this means that the occupation needs combat power, which may be used in the Gaza Strip and increased military pressure in order to end the battle there, which requires the presence of large military sectors.
Additional reserve forces may be used towards the northern front with Lebanon, as Israeli statements ruling out waging a war there may be considered “a kind of deception,” according to the spokesman, who said that there is a real problem in Israeli combat power.
Occupation Army Radio reported that the government was allowing the call-up of 50,000 additional reserve soldiers in preparation for the escalation on the Lebanon front.
Al-Falahi stressed that the escalation in the north is much more dangerous than the south, explaining that the Lebanese Hezbollah has strategic depth with Syria, Iraq and Iran, unlike Hamas, which has been under siege for years, has limited military capabilities, and has no Arab depth.
He added, “Hezbollah has a large missile arsenal, and it can strike most Israeli cities and various infrastructure facilities.”
Regarding the formation of a special anti-terrorism unit affiliated with the Gaza Division of the occupation army, the military expert pointed out that Israel has begun preparing to deal with any attacks similar to the seventh of last October and to avoid negative points, noting that its duties differ from those of the brigades.
