Hamas may encourage civilians to invade Israel, IDF warns

The military also discussed the terror group’s sabotaging of the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s distribution of aid.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

An Israeli military assessment urges preparation for a scenario in which Hamas may incite the Gazan population to invade Israel, Walla reported.

In response, the military deployed intelligence assets and reserve units and clarified the rules of engagement for senior commanders in the field.

The IDF also discussed the terror group’s sabotaging of the US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation’s (GHF) distribution of aid to civilians in the Strip.

Although the GHF has successfully distributed tens of thousands of food packages, each one designed to last 50 days, Hamas continues to arm its terrorists to intimidate civilians from receiving aid.

Terrorists have even fired at civilians approaching distribution centers, but many have found ways to avoid threatening behavior, including hiding in sheltered areas surrounding the distribution points.

Desperate to maintain their dominance and to avoid ceding control to foreign aid distributors, the terror group is attempting to dissuade the people from taking the aid.

“Hamas knows it no longer is the sole authority in Gaza,” a security official said. “Currently, we are working on refining the distribution centers to serve more people and establish additional sites.”

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Israel’s Southern Command predicts that more Gazan civilians will head south to receive aid, and as this happens, Hamas will continue to attempt to intimidate and even attack them. To prepare for this scenario, the IDF has deployed additional troops and reserve forces in the area.

In addition to facing obstacles created by Hamas, the IDF reports that UN officials have prevented the passage of 390 humanitarian aid trucks from the Kerem Shalom crossing into central Gaza.

Security officials report that Hamas is trying to encourage the UN not to cooperate with GHF in order to cause the collapse of the US aid organization.

The UN has raised concerns about potential legal issues concerning the aid distribution, but security sources believe this is merely an excuse.

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