Battle of Jabalia | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Part of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip (2023–present), the Insurgency in the North Gaza Strip and the Israel–Hamas war | |||||||
Gaza Strip under Palestinian control
Gaza Strip under Israeli control
Former occupied territories regained from Israel | |||||||
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
Israel |
Hamas Palestinian Islamic Jihad Al-Aqsa Martyrs’ Brigades[1] Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine[2] | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Benjamin Netanyahu Yoav Gallant Itzik Cohen |
Yahya Sinwar Mohammed Deif Ahmed Ghandour † Ibrahim Biari † Rafaat Salman Abu Abdullah † | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Al-Quds Brigades[14] National Resistance Brigades[15] | |||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
Over 120 bodies recovered[16] |
The battle of Jabalia was a battle that began on 8 November 2023 in the midst of the 2023 Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.[3]
An IDF combat team engaged in 10 hours of fighting in western Jabalia on November 8, during which it seized weapons and exposed tunnel shafts.[3] The al Quds Brigades launched mortars at Israeli forces operating in the area.[17][unreliable source?]
IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said that Israeli forces had expanded clearing operations to additional neighborhoods in Gaza City,[18] as the IDF 162nd Division began operating on the outskirts of Jabalia.[19][unreliable source?] An IDF spokesperson claimed that Hamas’ northern brigade maintained a command and control center and critical strongholds in Jabalia.[19][unreliable source?]
The IDF Nahal Brigade moved from the Al-Shati refugee camp toward Jabalia City to support offensive operations in the area.[20]
Israel said its forces encircled Jabalia on the night of November 20–21 as fighters conducted attacks on the Israeli lines of advance.[citation needed]
The IDF reported that the Israeli Air Force and artillery forces bombarded the Jabalia area north of Gaza city to “prepare” the battlefield.[21] The IDF told also residents to evacuate from Jabalia.[22][unreliable source?]
The commander of the IDF Southern Command said that the IDF was operating in the “core” of Jabalia[23][unreliable source?]
The IDF stated on that its Nahal Brigade was fighting militants in Jabalia.[24]
The IDF 460th Brigade raided an outpost for Hamas’ Central Jabalia Battalion in the al Bisan area of Jabalia. In addition Israeli forces killed several militants and located a network of underground tunnels, a training complex, and a weapons warehouse near the Hamas battalion's post.[25]
Israeli forces raided a series of buildings in Jabalia containing Hamas militants and weapons and advanced to the al Sheikh Radwan Pool southwest of Jabalia city.[26] Additionally, Israeli forces called in a drone strike to support their maneuvers in the city.[27]
Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant stated that Hamas’ Jabalia Battalion was “on the verge of being dismantled.”[28] Israeli forces captured Hamas military infrastructure in Jabalia, including explosives manufacturing facilities, training facilities, and weapons caches.[29]
IDF Brigadier General Itzik Cohen said that the fighting in Jabalia "resulted in the dismantling of the military capacity” of Hamas’ North Gaza Brigade.[30]
On 31 May 2024, the IDF withdrew from Jabalia after intense fighting and over 200 airstrikes, as well as destroying 70% of the refugee camp.[31][32]
Hamas: on May 19 Hamas condemned the "barbaric attacks" on Jabalia after the Israeli forces increased their attacks in the city, the group calls for the international community to stop the attacks.[33]