As Gaza City operations continue, IDF Kfir Brigade fights off 2 attempted attacks, 11 soldiers injured

Two serious incidents took place in Gaza City on Monday, involving soldiers from the Kfir Brigade, in which Hamas fighters attempted to infiltrate defended positions held by the troops. 

In one incident, the Kfir Brigade’s combat team identified two armed terrorists attempting to approach the force's defensive position in Gaza City. After observing the terrorists’ location via drone, the Kfir Brigade's fire coordination unit struck and killed the two terrorists. 

אמש חוסלו שני מחבלים חמושים שהתקרבו למגנן בעיר עזה; ביממה האחרונה חיל האוויר תקף יותר מ-160 מטרות טרור במסגרת מבצע 'מרכבות גדעון ב'

כוחות צה"ל בפיקוד הדרום, בהכוונת אמ"ן ושב"כ, ממשיכים בלחימה נגד ארגוני הטרור ברחבי רצועת עזה.

אמש, כוחות צוות הקרב של חטיבת כפיר, הפועלים תחת… pic.twitter.com/yCpxbbtcNL

— צבא ההגנה לישראל (@idfonline) September 30, 2025

However, hours later, a Hamas cell managed to breach that defensive encampment, attacking a tank from the 7th Armored Brigade’s 82nd Battalion with improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Five soldiers were injured seriously in the attack, which was successfully repelled. Two Hamas terrorists were killed in the attack, and the IDF is currently searching for the remaining three terrorists, who fled the encampment. 

The injured comprised a medical officer, a tank commander, and three tank crew members. Six other soldiers were lightly wounded in the fight, and all of the wounded were taken for medical care in Israel. 

In a separate incident, troops from Division 98, also operating in the Gaza City area, struck a terrorist identified as the head of a Hamas cell, along with three additional terrorists. 

On Tuesday morning, a Hamas terrorist was observed by soldiers of the Givati Brigade’s reconnaissance unit approaching their location while trying to conceal himself under a blanket. The troops fired upon the terrorist, killing him. 

Over the past few days, there have been multiple attempts by Hamas to infiltrate IDF positions in Gaza City as part of the terror group’s guerrilla warfare strategy. The military expects such attempts to continue, as Hamas avoids open confrontation, and attempts to keep the location of its own forces concealed from the IDF. 

Last week, Staff Sgt. Chalachew Shimon Demalash was killed by a Hamas sniper inside one of the defended encampments in Gaza. Military analysts have said that the IDF has not adapted its defensive strategies as quickly as Hamas has learned to exploit them in the latest Gaza incursion. 

Recognizing that it cannot confront the IDF head on in Gaza City, the terror group has shifted to guerrilla warfare tactics, and is prioritizing the use of hidden IEDs, sniper attacks, and attacks during change of shifts at the temporary protected positions inside Gaza. 

These protected positions, which the military uses to allow soldiers to rest while on the battlefield, have become the focus of Hamas attacks in recent weeks, as they are fixed targets in which soldiers spend hours at a time. 

The IDF believes that Hamas will continue to target these defensive positions over the coming days, especially after the announcement of Trump’s plan for ending the war, as capturing Israeli soldiers could allow the terror group to increase its demands as part of the negotiations. 

Meanwhile, the Israel Air Force has continued striking targets inside Gaza identified as threats by Military Intelligence. 

⭕️ OPERATIONAL UPDATE:

📍In Gaza City:
• Troops identified & eliminated 2 armed terrorists
• An IAF strike eliminated terrorists that included the head of a Hamas cell, another carrying an RPG missile and 2 additional terrorists who posed a threat to IDF troops.

📍In…

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) September 30, 2025

In several airstrikes carried out overnight and into Tuesday morning, 12 Gazans were reportedly killed, according to the Hamas-affiliated Shehab news agency.