IDF Dismantles Hamas Rocket and Weapons Production Sites

In a precision operation, the 646th Brigade and the 179th Brigade of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) conducted a targeted raid on a weapons production site in the Zeitoun neighborhood and adjacent areas in the northern Gaza Strip.

The forces, equipped with detailed information, discovered and dismantled numerous rocket production lines and weapons within the region on January 20.

The confiscated items included workshops, rocket fuel production lines, warheads, rocket launching pits, and explosive devices. The IDF reported that with the chemical materials and equipment seized, the potential production of more than 800 rockets was prevented. The rocket production process, deliberately dispersed across different locations, reflects Hamas's strategy to complicate detection and dismantling efforts.

Zeitoun, identified as a Hamas stronghold in the southern part of Gaza City, has been a focal point for the IDF's efforts to expose the group's alleged use of civilian sites for illicit activities.

These strategic operations significantly impact the weapons production process of both Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

The IDF had found another weapons production site in a central civilian area in Al-Maghazi in November 2023. Troops from the 188th Armored Brigade had uncovered a Hamas rocket-making lab, weapons cache, and a tunnel entrance inside a mosque in Gaza City's Zeitoun neighborhood.

Despite acknowledging the existence of an extensive network of secret tunnels, bunkers, and access shafts throughout Gaza, Hamas has denied allegations of locating these structures within civilian infrastructure like hospitals.