Half a year into the war: 604 fallen IDF soldiers, about 12,000 terrorists eliminated

Six months into the war, the ground operation in the Gaza Strip ended on Sunday with the withdrawal of the 98th Division from Khan Younis.

Currently, the 162nd Division and the Nahal Brigade remain inside the Gaza Strip on the humanitarian axis that cuts the Strip into two and through which Israel also prevents the return of Gazans from the south to the north.

In addition, the IDF has reorganized and redeployed troops around the Gaza Strip after establishing a new security strip in recent months.

The IDF says that the strategy that has proved itself in recent weeks is intelligence-based raids and, therefore, they will return to the area as needed. The IDF will begin a combat procedure and refresh forces to prepare for the continuation of operations in Gaza after the operation in Khan Younis has exhausted itself.

The IDF understands there will be a movement of Gazans in the south (Rafah - Khan Younis). There are plans to continue, including but not only Rafah.

The IDF also says that the withdrawal of troops is not related to pressure from the political echelon nor from U.S. President Joe Biden.

In fact, with the withdrawal of forces, Gazans can move freely in the south of the Gaza Strip - Rafah, Khan Younis, the central camps and, in general, in any area south of the humanitarian axis in northern Gaza that divides the coastal enclave into two.

The IDF released data about the war this morning.

According to the data, 604 soldiers have fallen since the beginning of the war, including 256 since the beginning of ground operations inside the Gaza Strip, and 41 as casualties in operational accidents.

Since the beginning of the war, 3,193 soldiers have been injured, including 1,552 since the beginning of ground operation in Gaza and 630 injured in operational accidents. As of April 4, 26 soldiers are hospitalized in serious condition.

Data from the IDF's mental health unit was also published, according to which approximately 10,500 soldiers have been defined as traumatic stress victims, with 82% of them returning to combat.

About 1,900 soldiers have been exposed to events with traumatic potential and developed symptoms as a result and after receiving treatment, about 85% of them have returned to combat.

Since the beginning of the war, the IDF has eliminated more than 12,000 terrorists in the Gaza Strip, including five commanders at the rank of brigade commander: the Northern Gaza Brigade commander, Ahmed Ghandour, who was the deputy of Mohammed Deif and served as the liaison between the military and political arm; Ayman Nofal, the Central Gaza Brigade commander and head of the organization's military intelligence; three commanders who are equivalent to the rank of brigade commanders – Ghazi Abu Tamaa, the head of Hamas' Administrative and Combat Support Staff, Ra'ad Thabat, the head of the Supply and Personnel Corps, and Iman Tsiam, the head of Hamas' Indirect Fire Array. In addition, in the north (southern Lebanon), about 330 terrorists have been eliminated, including about 30 commanders.

The Air Force planes have flown about 185,000 hours and attacked more than 32,000 targets in the Gaza Strip and about 1,400 targets in the north. In Gaza, more than 3,600 targets have been bombed and approximately 4,250 terrorist infrastructures have been destroyed. In the north, more than 3,300 land targets have been targeted.

In addition, about 12,200 rockets have been launched into Israeli territory, including about 9,100 from the Gaza Strip, about 3,100 from Lebanon and about 35 from Syria.

The IDF recruited about 300,000 reservists, of whom about 83% are men and about 17% are women.

In a breakdown by age, about 45% of the recruited reservists are aged of 20-29, about 32% aged 30-39, about 15% aged 40-45, and about 8% aged 50-69.

The issue of humanitarian aid for the residents of the Gaza Strip is crucial to the current war and has resonated strongly across the global community.

According to the IDF, about 50 airdrops involving about 3,000 aid packages have been conducted in the Gaza Strip and six field hospitals were established to treat the wounded. In addition, about 19,776 trucks entered the Gaza Strip through the Kerem Shalom and Nitzana crossings, carrying 369,990 tons of aid.

Against the backdrop of the fighting in the Gaza Strip and the north, the IDF continued its operations in the Judea and Samaria region, and the Jordan Valley District and carried out more than 6,000 proactive operations. During these activities, approximately 420 terrorists were eliminated and about 3,700 wanted persons arrested. The army carried out more than 70 brigade operations and demolished 19 homes of terrorists.