‘We have lost 50% of our fighters’ – Hamas document reveals terror group’s crushing personnel and weapons losses
Hamas leaders experience 'real hardship', DM Gallant says
Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant on Wednesday revealed a document found in the Gaza Strip that was addressed to Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and his brother Muhammad, describing the group’s “difficult situation” in great detail.
“To the honorable and beloved Sinwar brothers, please consider the following,” the document began, before detailing the losses inflicted by the Israeli army.
“We maintain the remaining weapons and equipment, as we have lost 90-95% of our rocket capabilities; and we have lost some 60% of our personal weapons; we have lost at least 65-70% of our anti-tank launchers and rockets, and most importantly, between those who are martyred and wounded we have lost at least 50% of our fighters, and now we are left with 25%.”
A picture is worth a thousand words. This picture was found in a tunnel where the Sinwar brothers were hiding like rats.
— יואב גלנט - Yoav Gallant (@yoavgallant) September 11, 2024
On 9/11 we remember the horrific attack on our closest ally, the U.S.
And we remember that our fight against terrorism, against Hamas, is the fight of the… pic.twitter.com/KoyE0eMOCm
According to the latest IDF estimates, the Israeli military has eliminated around 17,000 Hamas terrorists during the fighting so far, which includes about half of its leadership.
“The last 25% of our people have reached a situation where they do not tolerate it anymore, they are broken on a mental or physical level,” the document read.
The passages provided and translated by the Israeli Defense Ministry showed “a real hardship that affects Hamas and affects the most senior commanders,” Gallant said.
The message by Salameh, who was killed in the Israeli airstrike that also killed Hamas’ military chief Mohammed Deif, “cries out for the help of the Sinwar brothers, but of course they cannot save him.”
“Why? Because we are continuing the effort that started in October and continues step by step… and reaches all senior Hamas officials. He wrote this to the Sinwar brothers, we will get to them as well,” the defense minister added.
On Tuesday, Gallant told foreign reporters that “Hamas as a military formation no longer exists. Hamas is engaged in guerrilla warfare and we are still fighting Hamas terrorists and pursuing Hamas leadership.”
Salameh commanded Hamas’ Khan Younis Brigade and served as the right-hand man to Mohammed Deif, who was visiting him in his Khan Younis compound in July when heavy Israeli airstrikes killed them both.
A veteran terrorist in his own right, Salameh was responsible for planning and carrying out numerous terror attacks against Israel and was involved in the kidnapping of Gilad Shalit in 2006, as well as planning the suicide attack at the Orhan outpost in 2005.
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The All Israel News Staff is a team of journalists in Israel.