Live updates: Follow the latest news on Israel-Gaza
Urban warfare has produced some of the most brutal battles of the 21st century. In Fallujah in 2004, US Marines went house-to-house in a struggle with Iraqi insurgents that left hundreds of civilians dead.
Twelve years later, Iraqi forces spent more than eight months forcing ISIS militants out of Mosul in a battle that killed thousands and reduced the old city to ruins.
And in Ukraine in 2022, Russia attacked the port of Mariupol on day one of its invasion and captured it 86 days later after a bloody siege of its steelworks.
It is with these unpromising precedents that Israel is preparing to mount a ground offensive in Gaza, one of the world’s most densely populated areas.
The US has confirmed that it is sharing “20 years of lessons learnt” with the Israelis as they face up to Hamas’s drones, booby traps and network of tunnels in Gaza.
With President Joe Biden urging Israel not to be “blinded by rage” and repeat America’s post-9/11 mistakes, it also faces the question of what to do next if it overthrows Hamas.
“Soldiers will be asking, and commanders should be asking, what it is that you want to achieve with this mission exactly,” said Frank Ledwidge, who served as a UK military intelligence officer in Iraq and has written books criticising the conduct of Britain’s Middle East wars.
“The elimination of Hamas won’t do. That’s an operational objective. What is it that strategically you’re going to do?”
Hamas tactics
At a tactical level, Mr Ledwidge believes it is not just Israel that will be looking to learn the lessons of previous urban combat.
Hamas too “will have looked at the vulnerabilities, why it was that ISIS lost or were operationally defeated on the ground”, Mr Ledwidge told The National. One lesson, he said, would be for Hamas fighters to take “no fixed positions”.
“They will have learnt the ineffectiveness of vehicle-born IEDs [improvised explosive devices]. They’re very frightening but the Iraqis worked out ways to deal with them and the Israelis certainly will.
“However, the effectiveness of massive IEDs to neutralise armour and tanks is a lesson to be drawn not only from ISIS but also battles like Fallujah.”
US forces reported finding 26 IED factories in Fallujah, where dozens of American soldiers, hundreds of civilians and thousands of militants were killed during two battles. The hostilities were triggered by the killing and mutilation of four US contractors in early 2004, with Marines eventually entering the city to root out Al Qaeda militants there.
In Mosul it is estimated that more than 10,000 civilians may have died, some of them killed while trying to flee the battle between Iraqi forces and ISIS.
ISIS turned to urban warfare tactics such as “mouseholing”, which involves blowing holes in walls so that fighters can move between buildings unseen from the outside.
Lloyd Austin, the US Secretary of Defence, said the battle for Mosul might prove to have been easier than a campaign in Gaza, where he predicted that the Israelis would face “a lot of IEDs, a lot of booby traps”.
Defence analyst Sam Cranny-Evans said it was “easy to draw comparisons” with battles such as Mosul or Raqqa, another ISIS stronghold in Syria that was captured by US-backed forces in 2017.
“The key point really is the Hamas willingness to defend and hold its ground,” he said. “There have been a number of encounters between Israeli forces and Hamas in the past, and Hamas has displayed increasing capabilities over time.”
Hamas has the extra advantage of drones and rocket-launched grenades, making the battle for Gaza “the first war where the insurgents are going to have some significant air power”, Mr Ledwidge said. Hamas is believed to have used drones to sabotage Israeli defences during its attack on October 7.
Carlo Caro, a military analyst, wrote in a commentary for the Henry L Stimson Centre that combatants in urban warfare can find they “win the battle but lose the broader conflict”.
“Battles such as Hue in the Vietnam War and Fallujah in the Iraq War demonstrate that achieving victory in an urban conflict does not necessarily translate to success in the larger war,” he said.
Russia’s siege of Mariupol similarly bogged down its forces and made the city a symbol of Ukrainian resistance, making its eventual capture something of a pyrrhic victory for the Kremlin.
The warren of tunnels at the Mariupol steelworks are a parallel to the Hamas-built tunnels in Gaza. Israel believes entrances are hidden near schools and hospitals and accounts from hostages say they were held in the underground labyrinth, increasing the dangers to civilians.
Israel told 1.1 million people to leave northern Gaza before it invades, but the order was condemned as impractical and as many as 400,000 people are thought to still be there.
For civilians and local infrastructure, the repercussions of an Israeli assault on Gaza “could be far more catastrophic” than in Fallujah or in Grozny during the Chechen wars, Mr Caro said.
In Fallujah, an initial battle in early 2004 was halted amid pressure on the US to limit harm to civilians. Israel is likewise under immense scrutiny over its actions in Gaza.
Mr Ledwidge said Hamas would try to get invading forces bogged down in another long conflict echoing the bloody battles of recent years.
The "primary worry" for Israel's allies, he said, is "let’s get a plan together we think we can make work, so we don’t get to a point like we did in these other places”.
The specs
Engine: 1.6-litre 4-cyl turbo and dual electric motors
Power: 300hp at 6,000rpm
Torque: 520Nm at 1,500-3,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 8.0L/100km
Price: from Dh199,900
On sale: now
The biog
Name: Salem Alkarbi
Age: 32
Favourite Al Wasl player: Alexandre Oliveira
First started supporting Al Wasl: 7
Biggest rival: Al Nasr
UPI facts
More than 2.2 million Indian tourists arrived in UAE in 2023
More than 3.5 million Indians reside in UAE
Indian tourists can make purchases in UAE using rupee accounts in India through QR-code-based UPI real-time payment systems
Indian residents in UAE can use their non-resident NRO and NRE accounts held in Indian banks linked to a UAE mobile number for UPI transactions
Qosty Byogaani
Starring: Hani Razmzi, Maya Nasir and Hassan Hosny
Four stars
Specs
Engine: 51.5kW electric motor
Range: 400km
Power: 134bhp
Torque: 175Nm
Price: From Dh98,800
Available: Now
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Profile box
Company name: baraka
Started: July 2020
Founders: Feras Jalbout and Kunal Taneja
Based: Dubai and Bahrain
Sector: FinTech
Initial investment: $150,000
Current staff: 12
Stage: Pre-seed capital raising of $1 million
Investors: Class 5 Global, FJ Labs, IMO Ventures, The Community Fund, VentureSouq, Fox Ventures, Dr Abdulla Elyas (private investment)
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Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
Available: Now
A Prayer Before Dawn
Director: Jean-Stephane Sauvaire
Starring: Joe Cole, Somluck Kamsing, Panya Yimmumphai
Three stars
The specs: 2018 Dodge Durango SRT
Price, base / as tested: Dh259,000
Engine: 6.4-litre V8
Power: 475hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque: 640Nm @ 4,300rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed automatic
Fuel consumption, combined: 7.7L / 100km
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
SPECS
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Ms Yang's top tips for parents new to the UAE
- Join parent networks
- Look beyond school fees
- Keep an open mind
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
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T20 World Cup Qualifier, Muscat
UAE FIXTURES
Friday February 18: v Ireland
Saturday February 19: v Germany
Monday February 21: v Philippines
Tuesday February 22: semi-finals
Thursday February 24: final
How to donate
Send “thenational” to the following numbers or call the hotline on: 0502955999
2289 – Dh10
2252 – Dh 50
6025 – Dh20
6027 – Dh 100
6026 – Dh 200
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The specs: Fenyr SuperSport
Price, base: Dh5.1 million
Engine: 3.8-litre twin-turbo flat-six
Transmission: Seven-speed automatic
Power: 800hp @ 7,100pm
Torque: 980Nm @ 4,000rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 13.5L / 100km
MATCH INFO
Tottenham Hotspur 3 (Son 1', Kane 8' & 16') West Ham United 3 (Balbuena 82', Sanchez og 85', Lanzini 90' 4)
Man of the match Harry Kane
PROFILE
Name: Enhance Fitness
Year started: 2018
Based: UAE
Employees: 200
Amount raised: $3m
Investors: Global Ventures and angel investors
Bharat
Director: Ali Abbas Zafar
Starring: Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Sunil Grover
Rating: 2.5 out of 5 stars
Company profile
Company: Verity
Date started: May 2021
Founders: Kamal Al-Samarrai, Dina Shoman and Omar Al Sharif
Based: Dubai
Sector: FinTech
Size: four team members
Stage: Intially bootstrapped but recently closed its first pre-seed round of $800,000
Investors: Wamda, VentureSouq, Beyond Capital and regional angel investors
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If you go
The flights Etihad (www.etihad.com) and Spice Jet (www.spicejet.com) fly direct from Abu Dhabi and Dubai to Pune respectively from Dh1,000 return including taxes. Pune airport is 90 minutes away by road.
The hotels A stay at Atmantan Wellness Resort (www.atmantan.com) costs from Rs24,000 (Dh1,235) per night, including taxes, consultations, meals and a treatment package.
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo
Power: 268hp at 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm at 4,800rpm
Transmission: CVT auto
Fuel consumption: 9.5L/100km
On sale: now
Price: from Dh195,000
The specs
Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
Power: 398hp from 5,250rpm
Torque: 580Nm at 1,900-4,800rpm
Transmission: Eight-speed auto
Fuel economy, combined: 6.5L/100km
On sale: December
Price: From Dh330,000 (estimate)
Company profile
Name: GiftBag.ae
Based: Dubai
Founded: 2011
Number of employees: 4
Sector: E-commerce
Funding: Self-funded to date
england euro squad
Goalkeepers: Dean Henderson (Man Utd), Sam Johnstone (West Brom), Jordan Pickford (Everton)
Defenders: John Stones (Man City), Luke Shaw (Man Utd), Harry Maguire (Man Utd), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Kyle Walker (Man City), Tyrone Mings (Aston Villa), Reece James (Chelsea), Conor Coady (Wolves), Ben Chilwell (Chelsea), Kieran Trippier (Atletico Madrid)
Midfielders: Mason Mount (Chelsea), Declan Rice (West Ham), Jordan Henderson (Liverpool), Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Kalvin Phillips (Leeds)
Forwards: Harry Kane (Tottenham), Marcus Rashford (Man Utd), Raheem Sterling (Man City), Dominic Calvert-Lewin (Everton), Phil Foden (Man City), Jack Grealish (Aston Villa), Jadon Sancho (Borussia Dortmund), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal)
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