This is how tweeters commented on the sudden withdrawal of the occupation army from Khan Yunis

Highlights: The Israeli occupation army announced the withdrawal of units of the 98th Division, with its three brigades, from the Khan Yunis area in the southern Gaza Strip. The announcement sparked widespread responses. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said that the withdrawal came after “Hamas was no longer a military organization,” referring to the Israeli occupation’s plans to invade the city. In turn, the Al-Qassam Brigades commented, “The occupation entered most areas of the Gaza Strip and destroyed them completely.”

Surprisingly, the Israeli occupation army announced the withdrawal of units of the 98th Division, with its three brigades, from the Khan Yunis area in the southern Gaza Strip after the end of the operation there following 4 months of fighting, which sparked widespread responses.

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According to the Israeli army’s announcement, the Nahal Brigade was maintained in the “Netzarim” corridor, which separates the northern Gaza Strip from its south, 6 months after the start of the devastating Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, for which the occupation set two primary goals: the elimination of the Islamic Resistance Movement. (Hamas) and the recovery of prisoners.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Galant said that the withdrawal of forces from Khan Yunis came after “Hamas was no longer a military organization, and as part of the preparation for the Rafah mission,” referring to the Israeli occupation’s plans to invade the city located south of the Gaza Strip, adding, “Our forces are preparing themselves for other missions, as they did.” In the Shifa Complex.

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After the occupation army withdrew from Khan Yunis... destruction and the smell of death everywhere

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For his part, Israeli Army Chief of Staff Herzi Halevy denied that the withdrawal was due to international dictates, but he spoke about the losses among his forces and the loss of a number of them, and about the failure to fully achieve the goals of the war.

As for the Israeli media, they differed in their analyzes of the reasons for the withdrawal, as Haaretz newspaper believed that the withdrawal was due to a state of combat exhaustion, and without achieving the main objectives there.

As for Yedioth Ahronoth, it denied that the withdrawal was due to American pressure on Israel, while Channel 12 did not rule out that the withdrawal was aimed at preparing for a ground operation in Rafah.

The “Shabakat” program (4/8/2024) monitored some of the tweeters’ comments on this sudden withdrawal, including what Nizar bin Mubarak wrote: “I expect that they cannot (cannot) fight in the north, Khan Yunis, and Rafah at the same time...they took them.” In (in) stages...the next stage is Rafah after receiving a green light from the Arabs and America.”

Strategic or tactical?

While Hamid Rafiq tweeted, “This is a strategic withdrawal for the Zionist entity, not a withdrawal... This is a tactic for a new phase in the war on Gaza... And God willing, and God willing, this will be the end of the occupation,” Fella Al-Shita wrote, “The mission of Khan Yunis has ended, which was like its predecessors from the regions, and their concern is displacement.” And massacres, and bombing, and then blowing up buildings.”

As for Abdel Qader, he said, “Even the Zionists mock this statement, which ignores the fact that this defeated army suffered heavy losses in life and equipment only yesterday at the hands of the Qassam Brigades.”

In turn, the Al-Qassam Brigades commented, “The occupation entered most of the areas of the Gaza Strip and destroyed them completely, and it boasts that it succeeded in dismantling the Hamas brigades, and every time the occupation returned to areas where it was assumed that it would not find resistance, it was surprised by violent and qualitative resistance, and it was forced to end its operations until before achieving its goals.

In conjunction with the withdrawal of Israeli forces from Khan Yunis, the Al-Qassam Brigades broadcast previous scenes of their operations against the Israeli occupation forces in a message titled “You Will Burn,” in which they vowed to target those forces if they re-entered the Gaza Strip.

As for White House National Security Advisor John Kirby, he explained the Israeli withdrawal step as part of giving it a rest after months of military operations in the Strip.

It is noteworthy that this withdrawal is not the first. Last January, the Israeli army withdrew the 36th Division from the Gaza Strip, and at the beginning of last February it withdrew the 271st Battalion after weeks of fighting in Khan Yunis, and after that the 55th Brigade withdrew paratroopers from Khan Yunis as well.