The Israel Air Force is striking Hamas terror assets in the Gaza Strip “at a rate not seen in decades,” a military official said on Friday.
IDF Spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said the strikes were preparing the way for an expected ground assault to destroy Hamas’s capabilities.
The IDF struck more than 100 sites in Gaza overnight Thursday, including a mosque used to stage attacks on Israel.
מטוסי קרב תקפו במהלך הלילה מעל מאה מטרות מבצעיות של ארגוני הטרור ברצועת עזה, והשמידו פירי מנהרות, מחסני אמצעי לחימה ועשרות מפקדות מבצעיות.
— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) October 20, 2023
במהלך התקיפות חוסל על ידי צה"ל ושב"כ מחבל שהיה בכוח הימי של ארגון הטרור חמאס, המחבל לקח חלק בפעולות הטרור הרצחניות בעוטף עזה >> pic.twitter.com/b1qvniVmLK
Meanwhile, rocket fire continued to pound southern Israel on Friday, sending civilians running for shelter.
A 10-year-old girl collapsed when her heart stopped during a rocket attack on Ashdod. Magen David Adom paramedics performed CPR using a defibrillator and managed revive her at the hospital.
Red Alert sirens also sounded in Aderet, a moshav south of Beit Shemesh, with Hamas claiming to have launched rockets towards nearby Jerusalem.
Palestinian terrorists in Gaza have fired thousands of rockets at the Jewish state since Hamas initiated the war with its brutal Oct. 7 cross-border attack that killed 1,400 people in Israel.