What Is the Israeli Army Seeking in the Morag Corridor?

TEHRAN (Defapress) - Following the collapse of the temporary ceasefire due to the actions of the Israeli army in the Gaza Strip, the war in this roughly 350-square-kilometer enclave has entered a new phase, with Hamas and the Zionist regime striving to gain the upper hand.

Recently, the Zionist regime has carried out heavy bombardments in the central and southern areas of the Gaza Strip in an attempt to destroy the Resistance of Hamas and Islamic Jihad—a tactic that has failed over the past seventeen months and will not succeed.

Hamas and Islamic Jihad, by firing dozens of rockets in the past week, have demonstrated that they are on the verge of restoring their military strength, and a shift in the battlefield conditions in favor of the Palestinian Islamic Resistance is taking shape.

The Palestinian Islamic Resistance continues to fire short-range rockets and missiles from the ruins of Gaza at Israeli positions, while the Zionists have consistently claimed the destruction of the Resistance's weapons as a political and military bluff.

However, with the recent escalation of clashes, the Zionist regime is seeking the release of its captives in the Gaza Strip. They have also recently threatened that if military confrontations continue, they will permanently annex parts of the Gaza Strip to the occupied territories.

The Zionists aim to solidify their positions in the southern Gaza Strip and eliminate Hamas units in this strategic area. Field reports indicate that the Zionist regime’s army, continuing its occupation of Gaza, has recently warned residents of Khan Younis of imminent heavy attacks in the area.

But the question remains: Why does the Zionist regime’s army want to destroy Hamas’ Rafah Brigade? As evident from the situation on the ground in Gaza, the Zionist regime has failed to stand up to Hamas in the field. Thus, it is trying to force the Palestinian Islamic Resistance into surrender by bombing Gaza, though this does not appear to be an easy task.

The Zionist regime’s army’s pretext for destroying Hamas’ Rafah Brigade is a sinister plan that would effectively partition the Gaza Strip, with the strategic city of Rafah becoming a separate zone.

Analysts believe that with this move, the Zionist regime aims to cut off Palestinians’ access to medical supplies, food, and even weapons.

The Rafah area is now surrounded on all sides by Israeli forces, and the occupying forces will attempt to annex Rafah to the buffer zone as an area under occupiers’ control. This 12-kilometer-long corridor separates Rafah from Khan Younis and would essentially sever Rafah from the rest of the Gaza Strip.

The Zionist regime’s army and its 188th Brigade recently occupied the Morag Corridor in the southern Gaza Strip, effectively encircling Rafah from all directions. Their likely special objective is to isolate this area to seize the initiative in the Gaza Strip.

If we examine the Zionist regime’s field actions, we see that they are pursuing three main objectives in controlling the Morag Corridor (which connects Khan Younis and Rafah):

Creating a new field reality through the involvement of the 36th Brigade, the 188th Brigade, and the elite armored Golani Brigade.

Presenting Rafah as a buffer zone to ensure Zionist security, expelling all Palestinian residents of Rafah, preventing their return, and systematically demolishing all buildings (an act that constitutes a large-scale war crime, which the international community must intervene to prevent).

Launching a preemptive strike to gain leverage in negotiations with Hamas and Islamic Jihad.

Overall, it appears that Hamas can counter this plan through field Resistance and prevent its realization. If this new field reality is achieved, the Resistance in Gaza will face serious challenges. Therefore, the Morag Corridor must not become a tool for the Zionists in potential future negotiations.