Wagner mercenaries involved in training Hamas militants for operations against Israel, Ukrainian military say
Wagner Group mercenaries who left Belarus for Africa were involved in training and transferring combat experience to the Palestinian militant group Hamas, which attacked Israel on Oct. 7, the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s National Resistance Center has claimed.
The key areas of training for Hamas units were assault training and the use of small unmanned aerial vehicles to drop explosives.
Only the Russians, among Hamas's allies, have experience in the use of drones with drop mechanisms, and it was the Wagner mercenaries who handed them over to Hamas militants during exercises in Africa, the NRC alleged.
The war in Israel – What is known
Large-scale hostilities in Israel began on Oct. 7. Hamas targeted the country with thousands of rockets. Armed Palestinian militants invaded southern Israel, killing people and taking hostages.
As a result, nearly 700 Israelis have lost their lives. Over 100 have been taken hostage by Palestinian militants, and video evidence shows some of them have been murdered.
It was revealed on Oct. 8 that Palestinian militants on Oct. 7 may have killed approximately 250 people at an electronic music festival near the Kibbutz Re’im, 30 kilometers from the Gaza Strip. Efforts are currently underway to identify the bodies of the murdered festival goers.
In response to the Hamas attack, the Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Swords of Iron, striking the Gaza Strip. During the night of Oct. 8, Israel announced the restoration of control over the majority of the populated areas that had been penetrated by Palestinian militants.
Israel’s Cabinet declared a state of war for the first time since 1973, and the country’s prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, has warned that the war would be long and challenging. He called on the Gazans to "get out immediately because he would bring the full force of the Israeli military against the Gaza Strip's Hamas."
On Oct. 9, the IDF announced that it had regained control of all settlements bordering Gaza.
Among the dead in Israel are two Ukrainians, and there is evidence of the possible death of three more. Also, according to media reports, several Americans have been killed. The U.S. military is moving a carrier strike group and military aircraft closer to Israel, and will immediately begin supplying the state with ammunition and other military aid.
Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Daniel Hagari said on Oct. 9 that the Israeli military had regained control of all settlements on the border with the Gaza Strip, but that Hamas militants could still remain there.
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