The commander of the Gaza Division, Brigadier General Avi Rosenfeld, announced the "Oz and Nir" operation to eliminate Hamas terrorists in the Khirbat Ahzaa neighborhood responsible for the massacre at Kibbutz Nir Oz.
In a daily order distributed by Rosenfeld, he writes to the fighters: "My fellow fighters, since the outbreak of the war we have been fighting defensively and offensively on both sides of the border. On the accursed Sabbath, October 7th, the abominable terrorists came out of Khirbat Ahzaa, and committed the most horrible crimes that can be described.
"The terrorist attack by Gaza terrorists from Khirbat Ahzaa targeted Kibbutz Nir Oz, a settlement of people of work and peace. This brutal attack included a murder spree and kidnapping of many members of the kibbutz including women, children and the elderly.
"The outrage and shock at what happened to the people of Nir Oz and the frustration that we failed to protect them will always accompany us. We are committed to persecute the terrorists who were there and their helpers to the last of them and bring home from captivity in Gaza the people of Nir Oz and with them all the captives and the missing.
"In the last few days, we launched the "Oz and Nir" operation - an attack on the enemy's strongholds in Khirbat Ahzaa. We will work with all our might to eliminate the terrorists hiding there above and below the ground and to dismantle the infrastructures of terrorism and evil. When we do this, the members of Kibbutz Nir Oz will be in our hearts. Be strong and of good courage."
