Al-Qassam ATGM strikes Israeli vehicle in Rafah for the first time

Palestinian Resistance fighters carried on their confrontation with Israeli occupation forces on multiple fronts in the Gaza Strip, as fighting concentrated in the southern areas of Rafah on Sunday. 

For the first time since the invasion of Rafah was launched in early May, Hamas’ military wing, al-Qassam Brigades, announced that its fighters fired an anti-tank guided missile (ATGM) at an Israeli target. The announcement marks a rare incident in the Gaza Strip, which has seen little use of ATGMs against Israeli targets. 

Al-Qassam’s Military Media Unit said that the fighters fired an ATGM at an Israeli armored vehicle, Ofek, in Tal Za’arab in the southern part of Rafah. The statement added that the vehicle caught fire after being hit by the missile. 

The Ofek armored personnel carrier (APC) is a heavily armored vehicle used primarily by occupation officers to command and control battlefield units. Although this is its primary use, the vehicle was introduced recently and could be used for other purposes such as an onfield hospital. 

After the vehicle was hit by the Resistance’s missile, an Israeli military rescue force was deployed to the area. Al-Qassam fighters fired a barrage of locally-produced Rajoum 114 mm rocket artillery shells at the force. 

Other operations conducted by the Palestinian Resistance included a heavy shelling of Israeli occupation positions around Rafah and the Netzarim Axis. 

Al-Qassam mortar units jointly attacked, with al-Quds Brigades fighters, Israeli occupation forces in southern Rafah with barrages of mortar shells on Sunday. The brigades also conducted another shelling operation against Israeli occupation forces in the Tell al-Sultan neighborhood in southwest Rafah. 

Moreover, al-Quds Brigades fighters targeted Israeli soldiers in the Netzarim Axis, which splits the northern Gaza Strip from the rest of the besieged territory, with a salvo of rockets. 

The Israeli Kisufim military site was also shelled with mortars in a joint operation between al-Quds Brigades, al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigades, and al-Nasser Salah al-Din Brigades on Sunday. 

Al-Mujahideen Brigades fighters also fired several barrages of rockets at the Netzarim Axis. 

The Palestinian Resistance remains steadfast, employing every available tactic to counter the relentless Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, entering its 9th month.