The Israeli army announced on Friday morning that the 98th Division had begun an "offensive" operation in the Khan Yunis area in the southern Gaza Strip. The army claimed in its statement that the military operation came in response to intelligence information about the presence of militants and infrastructure in the area, and as part of efforts to strike the armed organizations in the Gaza Strip while they are trying to rebuild. The statement read, "During the attack, the forces are fighting above and below ground simultaneously, in addition to clearing the area of ??saboteurs and finding and destroying combat equipment and terrorist structures." He said. The Israeli army spokesman said that as the forces began entering the area, air force planes launched intensive raids targeting more than 30 Hamas targets in Khan Yunis, including weapons depots and meeting places for militants. According to the statement He claimed that during the raids, a number of Hamas elements were eliminated at the tactical level , who were working in the fields of sniping and firing mortar shells towards the occupation forces and Israel. In another statement, the Israeli army announced that an officer from the Nahal Brigade was seriously injured during battles that took place yesterday in the southern Gaza Strip. Source: Maan News Agency