Battle of Shuja'iyya (2023)

For other battles with the same name, see Battle of Shuja'iyya.

Battle of Shuja'iyya
Part of the siege of Gaza City during the Israel–Hamas war
Date4–26 December 2023
(3 weeks and 1 day)
Location
Shuja'iyya, Gaza City, Palestine
Territorial
changes		 Israeli withdrawal[1][2]
Belligerents
 Israel  Hamas
Palestinian Islamic Jihad
Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine
Commanders and leaders
Israel Yitzhak Ben-Bashat †
Israel Tomer Greenberg †[3]		 Hamas Amad Abdullah Ali Qariqa[4][5]
Hamas Wissam Farhat †
Units involved

 Israel Defense Forces

State of Palestine Palestinian Joint Operations Room

Casualties and losses
Israel 16 soldiers killed[6][7]
Israel 1 Namer destroyed		 Per Israel:[6]
935+ fighters killed
3 Israeli civilians killed[8]

During the Israeli invasion of the Gaza Strip, Shuja'iyya was the last district in Gaza City that had not been subject to an Israeli ground invasion, and as a result many Palestinians who had not been able to evacuate south had sought refuge in the district. Despite this, the Israel Defense Forces had shelled and bombarded targets in Shuja'iyya for weeks before invading on December 4. On the 26th of December, Israel withdrew from Shuja'iyya, announcing that the local Hamas battalion had been defeated. Despite this, militants continued to attack Israeli forces within the town.

  1. ^ "نباشر".
  2. ^ https://www.timesofisrael.com/liveblog_entry/idf-targeting-hamas-in-central-gaza-battling-terror-groups-al-bureij-battalion/
  3. ^ "Gaza: Israeli commanders among nine soldiers killed in Hamas ambush". The Guardian.
  4. ^ Brian Carter (8 December 2023). "The Order of Battle of Hamas' Izz al Din al Qassem Brigades, Part 1: North and Central Gaza". Institute for the Study of War. Retrieved 10 February 2024.
  5. ^ The Order of Battle of Hamas’ Izz al Din al Qassem Brigades (Updated)
  6. ^ a b אוגדה 36 נכנסה לאל-בורייג' במרכז הרצועה; כ-900 מחבלים חוסלו בשג'אעיה | תמונת מצב
  7. ^ "Ambush, Loss of Contact, Abduction Scare | Behind the Battle That Claimed Nine Israeli Soldiers in Northern Gaza Strip". Haaretz.
  8. ^ Bachega, Hugo (2023-12-16). "Israel Gaza: Hostages were carrying white cloth when shot, IDF says". BBC News. Retrieved 2024-07-16.