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Hamas Had Detailed Maps of Israeli Towns, Military Bases and Infiltration Routes
(Wall Street Journal) David S. Cloud - Hamas forces that flooded into Israel from Gaza on Saturday carried detailed maps of the towns and military bases that they targeted. Some also carried tactical guides identifying weak spots on Israeli armored vehicles. The documents in Arabic were recovered from the sites of attacks or bodies of dead Hamas fighters. The documents indicate that Hamas set out from the start to target not just military installations, but to attack civilian population centers and to take hostages, and they offer evidence of Hamas' degree of planning for the assault. One 14-page document, dated June 15, 2023, describes a plan for infiltrating Kibbutz Mefalsim and taking residents hostage. Attackers killed in the town of Ofakim also were carrying maps and other documents, said Almog Cohen, a resident and a member of Israel's Knesset, who took part in the fighting. One map showed the attackers had targeted the town and knew its landmarks. "The map marks places with crowds, synagogues and kindergartens," he said.