The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have announced the defeat of Hamas’s battalion in northern Gaza’s Beit Hanoun, following the surrender of three militants to troops from the Givati Brigade earlier today.
According to the IDF, the Hamas operatives emerged from a tunnel and surrendered after attempting to flee the area. One of their comrades had reportedly been killed in a previous gun battle with Israeli forces, prompting the others to give up.
The surrendered fighters also led Israeli troops to a nearby weapons cache hidden close to the tunnel. The military reports that the depot contained various arms and tactical equipment. Inside the tunnel, soldiers discovered stockpiled food, water, and other resources indicating it had been used as a long-term underground shelter.
The IDF confirmed that the militants were taken into custody for further interrogation. Meanwhile, combat engineers are currently assessing and mapping the tunnel system in preparation for its demolition.
“The Givati Brigade has dismantled the Beit Hanoun Battalion — a unit that had posed a serious threat to the communities of Nir Am and Sderot,” said the military in a statement.
Just last week, the Givati Brigade commander, during a field briefing, stated that only a handful — four to five — of Hamas gunmen remained in the area.
The IDF has operated in Beit Hanoun five times since the beginning of the war, slowly degrading Hamas’s battalion there, which, before October 7, 2023, consisted of over 1,000 operatives.
The majority of the Hamas gunmen in the Beit Hanoun Battalion were either killed during the fighting or fled, like the battalion commander, Hussein Fayyad.
Witkoff told the families that the goal is to stop the war, not make it worse.
During an emotional meeting in Tel Aviv’s Hostages Square, US special envoy Steve Witkoff told families of hostages that both Israelis and Gazans largely support the return of captives held by Hamas — a sentiment he said reflects a shared desire for peace and recovery.
“Most Israelis want their loved ones back, and many in Gaza also want the hostages returned because they seek the Strip’s rehabilitation,” Witkoff said, according to a Hebrew statement released by the Hostages and Missing Families Forum.
He emphasized that true victory can’t be claimed until every hostage is home: “There is no victory without bringing everyone back. All of you are now part of my family.”
Reinforcing Washington’s position, Witkoff said, “The objective is not to escalate this conflict but to end it.” He urged that future negotiations focus not on partial arrangements but on a comprehensive resolution that includes the return of all captives.
The meeting reportedly lasted nearly three hours, as families pressed for answers and reassurance about the path forward.
