A ball of fire and smoke rises during an Israeli airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, on Oct. 9, 2023. Photo by Atia Mohammed/Flash90
After a relatively quiet but tense third day of Operation Iron Swords, IDF spokesman Brig.-Gen. Daniel Hagari provided an overview of the situation on the morning of Day 4 of Israel’s war against the Hamas terror organization.
The latest tally of Israeli victims due to the surprise attack by Hamas in Israel early on Saturday morning stands at more than 900 dead and 2,600 wounded.
Israel’s Ambassador to the United Nations Gilad Erdan said that Hamas has taken between 100 and 150 Israeli citizens to Gaza as hostages.
Israeli ambassador to the U.N. Gilad Erdan on the hostages held in Gaza: “We estimate a number that is between 100 and 150. I think it’s an unprecedented number…It includes Americans. We don’t know the exact number.” pic.twitter.com/I6W3UciKaM
— Kaitlan Collins (@kaitlancollins) October 10, 2023
The exact number of hostages is still unknown but Israel has created an emergency staff under the command of Gen. (res.) Gal Hirsch to organize the efforts to identify the hostages and inform their families.
Hagari reiterated that the Israel Defense Forces has now established total control over Israeli territory but continued to scan the area to make sure no terrorists were still in hiding. Tens of thousands of soldiers are present in the area, Hagari added.
The settlements near the border have all been evacuated in anticipation of the coming days of fighting.
No additional infiltrations took place overnight, Hagari said, adding that the breaches in the border fence were closed with the help of tanks, drones and aircraft, while an elite sapper unit secured some of them with explosive charges.
Hagari reported that the Israeli Air Force continued its massive strike attack on Gaza for 36 consecutive hours, and pounded targets throughout the Gaza Strip overnight.
The most recent wave of attacks was concentrated in the Rimal neighborhood in Gaza City, which is one of the financial centers of the Gaza Strip and a symbol of Hamas’ power there.
The commander of the Hamas military wing, Yahya Sinwar, owned numerous gold shops in the neighborhood. Images on Tuesday morning show the area to be utterly devastated.
Another wave of attacks struck the town of Khan Younis, where IDF destroyed intelligence networks, operation centers and other buildings being used by the terrorists.
The sites destroyed so far by the IDF are numbered in the thousands, Hagari reported, adding that the Israeli Navy joined the attacks and destroyed multiple boats attempting to enter Israel from the sea.
