Israel-Hamas war: How the IDF is reducing Hamas rocket fire from Gaza

The IDF has brought down Hamas’s rocket fire substantially in recent weeks since the temporary ceasefire expired and the invasion of Khan Yunis began.

The week of December 1-7, Hamas still managed to fire 75 rockets per day, itself down from hundreds of rockets per day earlier in the war.

However, by December 8-14, the number of rockets from Gaza per day had dropped to 23.

From December 15-21, the average number of rockets dropped to 16, with the number remaining relatively steady December 22-27.

A moment of quiet?

As of 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, no rockets had been fired by Hamas.

The Khan Yunis crater where the home of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar used to be, December 21, 2023 (credit: YONAH JEREMY BOB)

With Hamas having already fired by some estimates around 13,000 rockets and Israel having destroyed large numbers of Hamas rockets, rocket launchers, and areas for placing rocket launchers, the terror group has been losing its launching capabilities.

Already in late November its capability to fire rockets from northern Gaza had dropped by 80%, and now its capabilities to fire rockets from southern Gaza has also dropped, though there is still a capability in Rafah.