The 98th Division has been hard at work locating and destroying tunnels in Shejaiya area of Gaza.
Located east of the center of Gaza City, the current campaign in Shejaiya represents the complexity of the IDF’s current strategy in Gaza. Once thought pacified, Hamas has been able to resurface quickly within the densely packed neighborhood triggering a reengagement with the IDF.
In the wide ranging division-level operation, six terror tunnels, about six kilometers long, were located and destroyed. While the 98th has been able to blow up this tunnel system, it appears now that the vast tunnel network under Gaza City can still be used to help Hamas move around undetected.
Some reports indicate that despite the above ground victories the IDF has racked up, the Gaza tunnel system is far more intricate and expansive than originally assumed. This development presents a challenge to the projection that Hamas is close to being finished.
With Hezbollah bombarding Israel, the IDF is still stuck in Gaza and instead of launching the much needed invasion of Southern Lebanon. Will Netanyahu finally decide to force the IDF leadership to switch to a far more aggressive approach in Gaza or will he succumb to the comfortable indecision that seems to reign over everything in the State of Israel?
Israel can either finish this war the victor or remain locked into a decade or more war of attrition resulting in the end of the State of Israel as we know it.