Israel Announces the Killing of Four Fighters in Rafah During Military Operations

The Israeli army announced today the killing of four fighters in the eastern area of Rafah, in the southern Gaza Strip, at a site it said lies within the zone to which its forces withdrew under the latest ceasefire agreement.

In a statement, the army said that the forces “eliminated four gunmen” after they emerged from an underground tunnel, adding that the operation took place within what it described as an “infrastructure zone” belonging to armed factions.

The statement explained that Israeli Air Force jets carried out airstrikes in Rafah “to remove a threat” after Palestinian fighters fired at an Israeli force, considering this an “violation of the ceasefire agreement.”

The army noted that its forces “have been working for weeks to destroy the remaining tunnels in Rafah” and to “target the gunmen hiding inside them,” according to the statement.

In a related political comment, the Israeli Minister of Finance said that “eliminating the besieged gunmen in Rafah is a security necessity,” without clarifying the nature of the expected steps or how they relate to the ongoing military operations.

There was no immediate comment from the Palestinian side regarding the Israeli account or the number of casualties.