Palestinian resistance Hamas has launched a massive operation named “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” against Israeli occupation in the Gaza Strip on the wee hours of Saturday, October 7th, coordinating land operations and firing a barrage of Soviet-made rockets targeted at several Israeli military installations.
The Hamas claimed that the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” aimed at liberating all occupied territories from the Zionist forces. This is a first-of-its-kind attack on Israeli military installations, which has stunned Tel Aviv, where far-right Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has declared a state of war for the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF).
Casualties of the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”
So far, the Palestinian “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” killed over 200 Israeli military personnel and illegal militant settlers in the occupied territories, according to the Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA). Over 1,100 IDF personnel and illegal settlers have been injured in the attacks, SANA reported.
The Israelis also retaliated by targeting the civilians in the Gaza Strip. SANA quoted the Palestinian Ministry of Health, which claimed 232 civilians were killed and 1,697 have been wounded in the Israeli aggression.
Before Saturday’s attacks, Israeli aggression on Palestinian territories killed nearly 500 civilians in 2023 alone. However, unlike Saturday’s fierce attack, the Hamas and other resistance factions couldn’t respond aptly against the Israeli aggression.
A jubilant Hamas
Although Hamas has anticipated severe Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip in response to its “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”, the resistance faction is jubilant over the initial successes it has achieved in stunning and beating the enemy hard.
According to Hamas, the resistance has taken control of over a dozen illegal settlements in the southern parts of occupied territories. The faction claimed that it drove away many militant Zionists who were illegally settled there. The displaced indigenous Palestinians have been called upon to retake their lost properties.
In the meantime, apart from stunning the Israeli military and its notorious intelligence agency Mossad, Hamas has also boasted of crippling the “Iron Dome” security system of Israel, which Tel Aviv has been hyping as a shield against any form of Palestinian rocket attacks on the occupied territories.
“We managed to kill and capture many Israeli soldiers. The fighting is still on”, Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri was quoted by Al Jazeera. It’s reported that several Israeli commanders, including General Nimrod Alani, have been taken prisoners by Hamas. Alani was the commander of the “Depth Corps”, which coordinates long-range military operations “deep inside enemy territory”.
“As to our prisoners, I say, your freedom is looming large. What we have in hand will see you set free. The longer fighting continues, the higher the number of prisoners will become”, al-Arouri told Al Jazeera.
Although the Israeli jails have over 5,000 Palestinians incarcerated sans basic human rights, the arrest of Israeli officials by Hamas has been a shock for Tel Aviv. Apart from the failure of Mossad to get intel on the attacks and the collapse of the Israeli security apparatus, including the “Iron Dome”, the arrests of the Israeli military officials by the Palestinian forces have caused panic and ignominy for Netanyahu’s government.
Palestinians ready for a protracted battle
Arab media outlets reported that the Palestinians who have suffered the Israeli aggression on Saturday are bracing for a protracted battle with the Zionists. Hamas has claimed that its “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” aims to liberate the Palestinian land from occupiers and won’t end anytime soon.
Hamas has claimed that it knows that the frustrated Netanyahu government will launch massive aggressive operations to avenge the humiliation. Hence, Hamas is also bracing for a protracted war. Thus, Hamas has claimed that it’s ready to fight a protracted battle. Hamas also said it’s waiting for the Israelis to launch a land operation, which they plan to defeat.
Israel is in deep trouble
For Israel, the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” has pushed it into deep trouble. The government has to mobilise its military resources and seek help from the West, its only close ally. However, Hamas’s operation has been planned in such a way that can stir up several geopolitical challenges.
Apart from the failures of Mossad, the IDF and even the “Iron Dome”, Netanyahu’s government has to manage the funds to mobilise the military against the Palestinians. Thus, Tel Aviv is looking towards the West, especially the US, for financial help.
But the US itself is in deep trouble and is resorting to printing more currency to pay federal expenses. Washington DC, as the chieftain of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), has been supporting the Ukrainian military endeavours against the West’s bête noire Russia. It has been taking a toll on its economy.
Even though US President Joe Biden and his government have extended support to Israel, according to American foreign policy, and promised help, it’s not clear how they will be able to manage such expenses as the US Federal Reserve is itself in a quagmire. Any attempt to print more money to provide aid to Israel will severely impact the US economy, which is what the Palestinian resistance has calculated.
In the meantime, the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” also jeopardised Israel’s attempt to normalise ties with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, which it needs to secure fuel supply. Saudi officials have criticised Israel for the resistance’s new lease of attacks, blaming Tel Aviv for bringing it onto themselves.
“(Saudi Arabia) repeatedly warned (Israel) of the consequences of the situation as a result of the occupation as well as of depriving the Palestinian people of their legitimate rights”, Saudi officials said in a statement.
Israel established diplomatic ties with the UAE in 2020. However, Abu Dhabi has not supported Tel Aviv out of its geopolitical compulsions and has taken a middle course, asking both sides to cease fire and end hostilities for a peaceful solution to the problem.
In the meantime, Israel’s principal rival Iran has hailed the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”, calling it a “great turning point” in the history of Palestinian resistance. “(The operation) shows the Palestinian resistance is confidently capable of conducting hybrid and multilateral operations against the occupiers”, Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said on Saturday.
“What happened today is in line with the continuation of the victories of the resistance in the face of the Zionists in various fields, including in Syria, Lebanon and the occupied territories”, the Iranian official added.
Iran-backed Lebanon-based Hezbollah has also hailed the “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood”. Hezbollah’s general secretary Hasan Nasrallah called it a “triumphant operation (and) a decisive response to the ongoing crimes of the occupation”.
Iran and Saudi Arabia, two erstwhile major rivals in the region, have been normalising their ties following a Chinese endeavour to establish peace in Middle East Asia. The coming together of the two major powers of the region against Israel on Palestinian resistance has also created a major problem for Tel Aviv.
The road ahead
For 75 years, Israel has been involved in unilateral brutal aggression against Palestinian people and has been occupying their land and resources to build a state based on the religious identity of the Zionist Jews.
Several uprisings by the Palestinians for their liberation had been crushed by Israel earlier, as it boasted its US-backed military prowess. This is the first time that the Palestinian resistance has caused a major setback to the Israeli occupation and forced it to retreat in several areas.
Hamas has claimed that “Operation Al-Aqsa Flood” will continue until the occupied territories are liberated. Although it doesn’t look feasible now in terms of the balance of forces and military capabilities, however, the changing geopolitical situation in the region and the gradual weakening of the US-led empire are providing much hope to the Palestinian resistance to pursue its goal.
