Screen grab from a footage published by al-Qassam Brigades military media depicting its fighters exiting a tunnel to engage Israeli occupation forces in Gaza, in December 2023 (Military Media)

The al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), announced on Saturday carrying out an ambush in Israeli military force, inflicting confirmed casualties among its members.

The Israeli forces admitted that two more officers succumbed on Saturday to injuries sustained in Gaza yesterday, raising the total number of Israelis killed in Palestinian Resistances' Friday operations to three.

In a statement, the group said it lured an Israeli engineering unit into a pre-rigged tunnel in the military sites area east of Deir al-Balah, before detonating the explosives, killing and wounding its officers and soldiers.

#شاهد | #كتائب_القسام تنشر مشاهد عن استهدافها جنود وآليات الاحتلال في محاور القتال في حي تل السلطان، غربي مدينة #رفح، جنوبي قطاع #غزة. #الميادين #طوفان_الأقصى pic.twitter.com/kE8UoBppU2
— قناة الميادين (@AlMayadeenNews) August 24, 2024

The operation came shortly after al-Qassam said its fighters detonated a minefield in the same area targeting multiple Israeli vehicles and engineering equipment, which was followed by the arrival of Israeli helicopters to carry out evacuation operations.

In the Jafraoui area, east of Deir al-Balah, the Resistance group reported engaging in intense combat with the advancing Israeli forces, resulting in significant casualties among them. The group also noted that military helicopters were observed landing to evacuate the wounded.

Additionally, al-Qassam Brigades announced targeting an Israeli tank and an armored personnel carrier APC using two al-Yassin 105 shells in separate operations east of Deir al-Balah.

Israeli media confirmed that a soldier was critically injured and several wounded were transferred to hospitals during the fighting in the Strip and Rafah.

Israeli media platforms reported a "deadly day in Gaza," highlighting a "difficult security incident" where army helicopters were evacuating casualties.

In continuation of the operations, the Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades announced striking gatherings of occupation forces and military vehicles along the Netzarim Axis, southwest of Gaza City, launching two 107 rockets and several heavy-caliber mortar shells.

In a coordinated operation, the al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades and the al-Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades, the military wing of the Popular Resistance Committees, targeted Israeli troop gatherings in eastern Deir al-Balah with 60mm mortar shells.