IDF declares Hamas defeated as a military, says it now operates as guerrilla terror group

Following almost a year of war, the Israeli military assessed on Friday that Hamas as a military group has been defeated, and has largely been degraded from a once potent militia force to a mere guerrilla terrorist group.

Israeli military leaders believe that is no longer the same organization it was on Oct. 7, when it invaded Israel, killing 1,200 Israelis and kidnapping 251 people.

Before the Iron Swords War, the IDF estimated that Hamas had some 30,000 operatives that were organized in five regional brigades and 24 battalions.

In August, IDF Spokesman Brig.-Gen. Daniel Hagari announced that the Israeli military had eliminated some 17,000 Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip since Oct. 7. Hamas has lost most of its top military commanders including Mohammed Deif and his deputy Marwan Issa.

In addition, the IDF has eliminated at least 1,000 Hamas terrorists who invaded Israel on Oct 7. Furthermore, thousands of terrorists have either been captured or seriously wounded.

In late August, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant announced that the IDF had defeated Hamas' last remaining brigade in Rafah in southern Gaza.

“The Rafah Brigade has been defeated, and over 150 tunnels have been destroyed in the region,” Gallant stated.

Some 348 Israeli soldiers have been killed during military operations in the Gaza Strip since the beginning of the war.

In September, Israel also eliminated an undisclosed number of terrorists and destroyed much of Hamas' military assets, greatly diminishing the group's ability to fire rockets into Israel.

However, the IDF stressed that Hamas still poses a security threat to Israel and that it would take time to eliminate its remaining military capabilities. The IDF urged the government leaders to prioritize the return of the remaining 101 Israeli hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza.

“If we wait, it is not certain that there will be anyone to return,” the IDF warned.

The challenge of securing a hostage deal and ending the war has been greatly complicated by the Iranian-backed Lebanese terrorist group Hezbollah.

Hezbollah began launching rocket and missile attacks on Israel's northern border on Oct. 8, in a show of solidarity with Hamas. Since then, the terror group has fired over 9,000 rockets, missiles and exploding drones into Israeli territory.

Dozens of Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers have been killed as a result and about 60,000 Israelis have been evacuated from their homes in northern Israel for almost a year with no certainty when they will be able to return home.

Hezbollah has insisted on continuing its attacks against Israel until a Gaza ceasefire is reached. However, it is unclear whether Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is genuinely interested in reaching a ceasefire.

Sinwar has repeatedly called on Hezbollah, Iran and other Iranian-backed terrorist proxies to escalate their attacks on the Jewish state. The IDF believes Sinwar has changed his location in the Gaza Strip following the IDF's massive airstrike that eliminated Hezbollah Sec.-Gen. Hassan Nasrallah on Friday.

With Hamas largely degraded as an organized militia, the IDF is now shifting its focus on dismantling the Hezbollah threat in the north. The Israeli military confirmed on Saturday that Nasrallah was killed in the terror group's headquarters in Beirut on Friday, along with other senior Hezbollah leaders.