Israel Raises Alert Level in Gaza Ahead of Election

Israel raised its alert level to the highest degree in the Gaza Strip, days before the upcoming Knesset elections scheduled for next Tuesday, stating it fears Hamas's impact on the election.

A security source reported that the Israeli army intensified pressure on Hamas and Islamic Jihad in the Gaza Strip over the past two weeks, bringing the average number of field commanders and operatives whose operations were thwarted to between 2 and 3 per day, according to a report by the Hebrew site "Walla".

The report noted that Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir, who visited the Gaza Strip yesterday, Tuesday, pointed to the general tension preceding the elections, saying: "Our goal is to thwart any threat and enable the conduct of democratic elections without any external influence."

In addition, Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz directed an expansion of intelligence gathering scope prior to the elections, amid concerns about attempts to influence the electoral campaign, according to "Walla".

The security official affirmed, saying: "We recognize Hamas's interest in the Israeli electoral campaign and its impact on what will happen later. Without specific intelligence regarding this or that action, we do not take risks. Hamas continues to work on rebuilding its military wing," as he put it.

According to "Walla", the Southern Command, the Air Force, Military Intelligence, and the General Security Service (Shin Bet) are preparing for a variety of scenarios from the Gaza Strip, including: rocket launches, attacks on Israeli army positions along the Yellow Line, infiltration attacks on positions along the Yellow Line and along the sand fence on the international border, all with the aim of disrupting public order in Israel.

The report continued: "Based on this, the head of the Operations Division, Major General Itzik Cohen, issued instructions to reinforce air, sea, and land domains in the coming days, including special forces operating as intervention and reserve units, to prevent any surprise attack similar to the October 7 attack."

Meanwhile, security officials acknowledge that intelligence is not perfect, and that to prevent any surprises, no leniency is shown in any domain or location, according to the Hebrew report.