1: Hamas is firing rockets and mortars at the Keram Shalom aid crossing, again. Israel just re-opened it 24hrs ago
If the White House stays true to form, they'll complain that Israel closed that crossing, again. And they'll do so about 8hrs after Israel re-opens it, again.
2: Hamas is demanding a 12hr cease fire.
3: Probably because the IDF now controls the main north/south street in eastern Rafah and several side streets off of that route.
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Note from previous map above...
I was wrong. The IDF Armored brigade did go to Rafah Crossing and the IDF Mech brigade did roll north through the abandoned airport.
Should have listened to my own internal doubts when I saw the brand new Merkava 4M Barak at the Rafah crossing.
There is still another IDF Mech brigade in reserve and another IDF division behind that.
No question now that the Hamas Rafah East Battalion is severally degraded or no longer existent.
The 3 surviving Rafah battalions seem to be retreating northwards toward the coast.
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A reminder that "brigades" and "battalions" in reference to Hamas is something of a euphemism. They aren't really military formations, just gangs of thugs and gunmen, formed into larger gangs of thugs and gunmen. They tend to operate in individual small cells of around 4-6 members that don't coordinate with other cells.
