July 2024 Khan Yunis incursion

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July 2024 Khan Yunis incursion
Part of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip during the Israel-Hamas war
Date22 July 2024 – 30 July 2024
(1 week and 1 day) [1]
Location
Khan Yunis, Gaza Strip, Palestine
Belligerents
Flag of Israel.svg  Israel Flag of al-Qassam Brigades.svg  Hamas
Black flag.svg Palestinian Islamic Jihad [2]
Infobox al-Aqsa.png Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades [3]
Commanders and leaders
Flag of the Israel Defense Forces.svg Dan Goldfuss Flag of al-Qassam Brigades.svg Mohammed Sinwar [4]
Units involved

Flag of the Israel Defense Forces.svg  Israel Defense Forces

Palestinian Joint Operations Room

Casualties and losses
Flag of the Israel Defense Forces.svg Unknown
Per Hamas:
Flag of the Israel Defense Forces.svg 1 Namer destroyed [6] 		Per Israel:
Flag of Palestine.svg 150+ militants killed [7]

Per Palestinian sources:
Flag of Palestine.svg 300 Palestinians killed [8]
Flag of Palestine.svg 416+ Palestinians injured [9]
Flag of Palestine.svg 200 Palestinians missing [7]

Per UN:
Flag of Palestine.svg 190,000+ Palestinians displaced [7]

Israeli forces launched an incursion into Khan Yunis on 22 July 2024 [10] as part of the ongoing Israel–Hamas war. It marked the return of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) to the Khan Yunis area inside the Gaza Strip after a previous battle and siege which lasted from December 2023 to April 2024. [11] [12] [13]

Background

First battle

The first battle between Israel and Hamas in Khan Yunis, part of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, began on 1 December 2023 and evolved into a siege in late January 2024. It ended on 7 April 2024 with the withdrawal of the IDF from not only Khan Yunis but all of the southern Gaza Strip, a move which was partially reversed with the ongoing Rafah offensive beginning in May 2024.

The IDF had failed to dismantle Hamas in Khan Yunis, with the latter firing rockets at Israel hours after the withdrawal, [14] and retaining "combat effectiveness" in the city. [15]

Evacuation order

The IDF issued an evacuation order to Palestinian civilians, [10] a move which was seen as controversial by some for supposedly allowing Hamas commanders to escape with the civilians. [16] The Palestinian Civil Defense said that the evacuation order would affect around 400,000 people. [17] [18] Israel downsized the humanitarian zone where 1.7 million Palestinians took refuge and adjusted its boundaries, reducing it from 65 sq km to 48 sq km. [19]

Battle

IDF troops under the command of Brigadier General Dan Goldfuss [16] began a ground offensive into Khan Yunis on 22 July. The IDF claimed to have struck around 30 Hamas infrastructure targets with a mix of ground strikes and air strikes. [16] [18] Israeli tanks advanced into and attacked multiple small towns on the eastern fringe of Khan Yunis with air support. [20] [21] This included an Israeli attack on Bani Suheila, a town in the Khan Yunis area, which resulted in the deaths of 73 Palestinians and more than 270 injured. [19] [22] [23]

Hamas targeted IDF tanks advancing in Bani Suheila with rocket-propelled grenades and explosively formed penetrators. [21]

On 24 July, the IDF had confirmed that it had recovered the bodies of 5 Israelis, 2 civilians and 3 soldiers. They were killed during the Hamas-led 7 October attacks against Israel and their bodies were taken to the Gaza Strip by Hamas. [12]

On 25 July, it was reported that Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades were clashing with the IDF within and around Khan Yunis. According to the IDF, Hamas attempted to fire several rockets into Israeli territory from Khan Yunis, but these failed and fell near an UNRWA-run school, injuring several people and killing two. [24] [25]

On 30 July, the IDF withdrew from Khan Yunis, and Palestinians began returning to their homes in the area. [1]

Aftermath

Days later on 9 August, the IDF invaded Khan Yunis a third time, and withdrew once more from the area on 30 August.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Khan Yunis</span> City in Gaza, Palestine

Khan Yunis, also spelled Khan Younis or Khan Yunus, is a Palestinian city serving as the capital of the Khan Yunis Governorate in the southern Gaza Strip. It has been largely destroyed on account of the ongoing Israel–Hamas war.

Al-Qarara or Al Qarara is a Palestinian town located north of Khan Yunis, in the Khan Yunis Governorate of the southern Gaza Strip. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics, al-Qarara had a population of 29,004 inhabitants in 2017, The town is 15 miles south of Gaza City, and used to be a farming village. It lies on trade routes dating back to the Bronze Age.

The year 2023 in Israel was defined first by wide-scale protests against a proposed judicial reform, and then by the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7, which led to a war and to Israel invading the Gaza Strip.

Events in the year 2023 in Palestine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip</span> Israeli military operation since 2023

The Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip is a major part of the Gaza war. Starting on 7 October 2023, immediately after the Hamas-led attacks on Israel, it began bombing the Gaza Strip; on 13 October, Israel began ground operations in Gaza, and on 27 October, a full-scale invasion was launched. Israel's campaign has four stated goals: to destroy Hamas, to free the hostages, to ensure Gaza no longer poses a threat to Israel, and to return displaced residents of Northern Israel. More than a year after the invasion, fighting in the Gaza Strip halted with the implementation of a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas on 19 January 2025.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Khan Yunis</span> 2023 military engagement in the Gaza Strip

The battle of Khan Yunis, which evolved into the siege of Khan Yunis in late January 2024, began on 1 December 2023 in the midst of the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip.

Events in the year 2024 in Palestine.

The following is a list of events during the Israeli–Palestinian conflict in 2024, including the events of the Israel–Hamas war.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rafah offensive</span> 2024 Israeli offensive along the Egypt–Gaza border

On 6 May 2024, Israel began a military offensive in and around the city of Rafah as part of its invasion of the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war.

The Hamad City incursion was a two–week Israeli military operation against Hamas forces in the apartment complex and neighborhood of Hamad City, Khan Yunis, in the Gaza Strip.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Siege of Al-Qarara</span> 2024 military engagement in southern Gaza

The siege of Al-Qarara was a military engagement between invading Israeli forces and local Palestinian forces.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">13 July 2024 al-Mawasi attack</span> 2024 Israeli attack on refugee camp in Gaza

On 13 July 2024, Israeli airstrikes hit the Al-Mawasi area near Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip during the Israel–Hamas war. The attack killed at least 90 Palestinians, among them women and children, and injured over 300. Israel said that the strike targeted Hamas top leaders. Survivors reported that they were targeted without warning in an area they were told was safe.

On 22 July 2024, Israel sent tanks and launched airstrikes on eastern Khan Yunis in the Gaza Strip. The Gaza Health Ministry reported that 73 Palestinians were killed by Israeli fire, while more than 270 were injured.

Israeli forces launched an incursion into Khan Yunis on 9 August 2024 was a battle in the Israel-Hamas war which began on 9 August 2024. The battle represented the third separate ground operation in Khan Yunis by Israel against Hamas-led Palestinian forces, following the first siege and a brief incursion in the city.

References

  1. 1 2 "Israeli forces quit east Khan Younis, Palestinians recover dozens of bodies". Reuters. 30 July 2024.
  2. ↑ "IRAN UPDATE, JULY 24, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. 24 July 2024.
  3. ↑ "IRAN UPDATE, JULY 25, 2024". 25 July 2024.
  4. ↑ https://www.understandingwar.org/backgrounder/order-battle-hamas%E2%80%99-izz-al-din-al-qassem-brigades-part-2
  5. 1 2 3 "Institute for the Study of War".
  6. ↑ "Qassam and al-Quds Brigades claim attacks on Israeli military". Al Jazeera. 24 July 2024.
  7. 1 2 3 "Israeli army says Khan Younis invasion complete". Al Jazeera. 30 July 2024.
  8. ↑ https://aje.io/7tvo9m?update=3080855
  9. ↑ https://aje.io/bo0wuu?update=3068295
  10. 1 2 "IDF orders evacuation of part of Gaza safe zone, says Hamas deeply embedded in area". The Times of Israel. 22 July 2024.
  11. ↑ Picheta, Vasco Cotovio, Rob (2024-04-07). "Israeli military says it has withdrawn forces from Khan Younis after months of fighting". CNN. Retrieved 2024-04-08.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. 1 2 Fabian, Emanuel (25 July 2024). "IDF names 5th hostage whose body was recovered by troops in Gaza as Ravid Katz". The Times of Israel.
  13. ↑ "IDF ends active ground invasion, completely withdraws from southern Gaza". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2024-04-07. Retrieved 2024-04-08.
  14. ↑ Fabian, Emanuel (7 April 2024). "Five rockets fired from Khan Younis at Gaza border communities, hours after IDF withdraws ground troops". The Times of Israel. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
  15. ↑ "IRAN UPDATE, APRIL 7, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
  16. 1 2 3 "IDF reinvades Khan Yunis after 3.5 month break as it draws down some forces from Rafah". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2024-07-22. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
  17. ↑ Gadzo, Mersiha. "Israel-Palestine conflict | Live updates | Today's latest from Al Jazeera". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
  18. 1 2 Al-Mughrabi, Nidal; Rabinovitch, Ari; Khaled, Hatem (22 July 2024). "Israel sends tanks back into Khan Younis area, 70 killed after new evacuation order". Reuters.
  19. 1 2 Al-Mughrabi, Nidal (22 July 2024). "Israel sends tanks back into Khan Younis area, 70 killed after new evacuation order". Reuters. Retrieved 23 July 2024.
  20. ↑ "'Like doomsday': 70 killed in Israeli tank shelling, strikes on Khan Younis". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 2024-07-22.
  21. 1 2 "IRAN UPDATE, JULY 22, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-07-23.
  22. ↑ Rasgon, Adam; Bigg, Matthew Mpoke; Stevenson, Alexandra; Fuller, Thomas (2024-07-23). "Rival Palestinian Factions Project Unity, but Deep Divisions Remain". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2024-07-26. The Gazan Health Ministry said that 73 people had been killed by Israel's bombardment of the area on Monday, including 24 children. More than 270 others were injured, some severely, the ministry said.
  23. ↑ "At least 39,090 Palestinians killed in Gaza since Oct. 7: Ministry". Al Arabiya. Agence France-Presse. 23 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024. According to the health ministry, the death toll from an Israeli operation launched in Khan Younis on Monday rose to 73, including 24 children and 15 women, with more than 270 wounded.
  24. ↑ "IRAN UPDATE, JULY 25, 2024". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  25. ↑ "Failed Hamas launches hit UNRWA school, killing civilians". The Jerusalem Post | JPost.com. 2024-07-25. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
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