Haaretz: The missile that killed 21 soldiers in Gaza was produced by Hamas

Israel’s Haaretz newspaper said on Wednesday that the missile that killed 21 soldiers in Gaza on Monday was “locally produced” by Hamas.

The newspaper reported that the “Hamas RPG that killed 21 Israeli Soldiers” is a “tandem warhead made in Gaza.”

It pointed out that “According to Palestinian reports, the projectiles fired on Monday on the soldiers are Yasin 105 rockets, which are based on the PG-7VR, which the Soviet Union developed in 1988.”

“This RPG, one of many that has been developed during the endless arms race between the rocket and the tank, is equipped with a tandem-charge weapon. The first is meant to pierce the tank’s reactive armour, while the second, with its large hollow charge, is designed to penetrate the main armour,” it added.

Haaretz noted that “The Yasin 105 is locally-produced. If and when the army should withdraw from Gaza and Hamas renews its weapons production, it will easily be able to re-equip with this weapon.”

“According to Palestinian publications, the Yasin can penetrate up to 750mm of steel armour and up to 600mm of an armoured vehicle with a reactive layer,” said the newspaper.

Israeli occupation army spokesman, Daniel Hagari, acknowledged in a press conference on Tuesday, the killing of 21 reserve soldiers while fighting in the central Gaza Strip, in an incident that Tel Aviv described as “the most difficult” since 7 October.

The Israeli government broadcasting authority explained that the killing of the soldiers occurred  when soldiers booby-trapped two buildings in the Maghazi camp. Following this operation, Hamas members fired anti-tank missiles, which led to the explosion of explosive devices and the collapse of the two buildings on the Israeli soldiers.

Since 7 October, 2023, the Israeli occupation army has been waging a devastating genocidal war on the Gaza Strip, which, as of Wednesday left 25,700 martyrs and 63,740 injured, most of them children and women, according to the Palestinian authorities, and has caused massive destruction and an unprecedented humanitarian catastrophe according to the UN.

READ: Israel says 17 more soldiers injured in Gaza fighting