Tel Aviv, Jan 7 (IANS): The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has said that it has "dismantled" the military framework of Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip.

IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari in a press conference on Saturday said that the Israeli troops have "dismantled" the military framework of Hamas in the northern Gaza Strip and are now focussing on dismantling Hamas in central and southern Gaza.

Meanwhile, the IDF and Shin Bet said that the commander of Hamas' Nuseirat battalion in central Gaza, Ismail Siraj, and his deputy, Ahmed Wahaba, were killed in an airstrike.

The Nusierat Battalion was reportedly responsible for the attacks on Kibbutz Be'eri on October 7.

Hagari, however, said that there is still likely to be sporadic rocket fire on Israel from those areas even though the military network has been dismantled.

He also said that the refugee camps in central Gaza are full of terrorists while Khan Yunis area is full of underground tunnel networks of Hamas.

The IDF spokesman said that the fighting will continue throughout 2024 and the military is working on a properly laid out plan to achieve the goals of the war to dismantle Hamas and get all hostages released.