TEHRAN- The Israeli military has withdrawn all its ground troops from southern Gaza after four months of battle with the Palestinian resistance fighters in Khan Younis.

Palestinian factions have put up a resilient resistance in the flashpoint city, waging one ambush after the other while Israeli tanks and soldiers have been widely targeted by RPG shells, Al Yassin shells and Palestinian snipers. 

The 98th Division along with several other Israeli battalions have completely withdrawn from the entire southern Gaza Strip, according to the Israeli military. 

An Israeli military spokesperson told Reuters that “the army has withdrawn all ground forces from the south of the Gaza Strip except for one battalion.”

The Israeli occupation forces say the “162nd division and the Nahal brigade” continue to operate in the Gaza Strip. 

The regime’s media clarified that this brigade is responsible for securing a corridor in the central part of the Palestinian territory in an attempt to prevent Palestinian residents from returning to their homes in the northern part of the enclave.

In a sign that the Palestinian resistance has stood its ground, just hours after the Israeli army announced its withdrawal, rockets were launched from Khan Younis towards settlements surrounding the Gaza Strip. 

As the regime’s genocidal war on Gaza reached the half-year mark, the Israeli military on Sunday allowed for the publication of the names of another four soldiers killed in the southern Gaza Strip.

The four commandos were killed on Saturday, the Israeli military said in a statement. Hamas said it had ambushed Israeli ground forces in the al-Zanna area of Khan Younis on Saturday.

Rescue operations carried out by the Israeli military after the al-Zanna ambush had reportedly faced difficulties by Palestinian fire and were later backed by missiles from Israeli warplanes and reconnaissance aircraft, in addition to intensive tank fire in the area.

At least three Israeli helicopters are said to have landed east of Khan Younis to airlift the dead and wounded Israeli soldiers.

Regional reporters on the ground have indicated that the Palestinian resistance has recorded a heroic victory in Khan Younis. Israeli media described the battles in the city as “difficult”. 

At least 604 Israeli troops and officers have been killed since October 7, with another 3,118 injured, according to the Israeli occupation forces. Experts believe the casualty figures are much higher. 

The four-month battle to break the resistance in Khan Younis took longer than expected and ultimately failed despite images showing large parts of the southern Gazan city reduced to rubble. Medics said they found at least one dozen Palestinian bodies in the area. 

Reporters have spoken of two difficult fronts that the Israeli Occupation Forces faced. One was in the al-Zanna area west of the city, and the second in the Amal neighborhood to its east.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu had anticipated a much shorter time frame for the ground invasion of Khan Younis to “eliminate” Hamas in order for the Israeli occupation forces to invade Rafah, the southernmost region of Gaza where more than 1.4 million Palestinians are seeking shelter. 

The White House national security spokesperson John Kirby says the Israeli military’s withdrawal was down to the regime’s troops needing “a rest”. 

Analysts have been quick to point out that if the troops were in need of “a rest” then the Israeli military could have easily replaced them with other brigades. 

Israeli media justified the withdrawal from Khan Younis by claiming a transition to what they branded as “Phase C,” explaining that this phase includes “raids and pinpoint operations based on intelligence.”

Experts familiar with the Palestinian resistance in Gaza believe that the death and destruction inflicted on the Israeli ground forces in the Gaza Strip, particularly in Khan Younis, will improve the Palestinian negotiating position in Cairo.

Hamas had announced that a senior delegation from the movement, led by Khalil al-Hayya, would head to the Egyptian capital Cairo on Sunday in response to an Egyptian invitation for ceasefire talks.

Netanyahu is said to be “desperate” for a deal with Hamas as pressure mounts on him amid violent protests against his leadership on the streets of Tel Aviv and the occupied al-Quds (Jerusalem) as well as strong international criticism after the murder of six Western aid workers last week. 

The Israeli withdrawal from southern Gaza comes after the regime waged an indiscriminate daily aerial bombing campaign accompanied by ground offensives half a year ago. 

Since then Tel Aviv has failed to achieve any of its stated goals, dismantling Hamas, recovering the captives or ending rocket and missile fire from Gaza. 

The indiscriminate Israeli air and ground assaults have killed more than 33,000 people in Gaza, including 13,800 children since October 7. Nearly 76,000 others have been injured. The majority of whom women and children, according to the Gaza health ministry. 

Palestinian officials say they believe the number of civilians killed will be much higher once bodies have been recovered from buildings razed to the ground.