By Amira Hass Correspondent .
The testimonies of Gaza Strip residents are revealing new details about the Israel
Defense Forces‘ mode of operation there. In the past two days, Beit Lahia residents forced from their homes said soldiers were posing as members of Hamas' armed wing while advancing on the ground
.The daily pauses in bombing allow Gazans to meet with the displaced - most of
whom are housed in an UNRWA school - and hear their stories
Gaza resident S. told Haarelz he heard several people say they saw armed
men wearing the uniforms and symbols ofthe lz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, who
"called out to each other in Arabic, as ig they had caught a collaborator, and then,
with the element of surprise,went into the houses.
A Gaza radio station wamed that troops posing as locals were driving a
vehicle normally used by paramedics. Residents said the radio broadcaster listed
the vehicle's license plate number and color.Haaretz has also leamed that one of the
army's methods for evacuating a home
is to fire a missile toward its upper level. That is how B's house in Sajaiyeh was
destroyed. lt was bombed just a few minutes after a missile struck and 40 shell-
shocked family members walked out of the house.
The IDF has also forced at least 40,033 people to leave their homes in
agricultural and border areas. In Rafah. most of the 20000 people removed from
their homes were lodging with relatives and not in UNRWA facilities.
