Israelis: Combat-avoiding Hamas battalions 'have simply disappeared'

TEL AVIV — Israel's military has determined that Hamas combatants were starting to desert their units in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli military sources reported a significant drop in Hamas's military presence in the northern and central Gaza Strip. The sources said the Hamas military has abandoned its conventional tactics and were fighting largely as individuals or in pairs.

"Their operatives evade engagement with our forces and prefer remote-controlled operations from a distance," Israeli military intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Amos Yadlin said on Jan. 11. "Their leadership in Gaza is paralyzed. Their military wing is evasive." [Continue]