Senior Hamas Rocket Operative Killed, His Jihadis Going AWOL

First off, this is a nice hit for the IDF taking out Amir Mansi who was a senior rocket team commander for Hamas' military wing, but the best part of this story is just WHY Mansi was out there on the rocket firing line when he bit an IDF shell. Here's the details from The Jerusalem Post:

IDF troops in the Gaza Strip on Saturday targeted Hamas operative Amir Mansi, a senior member of Izzadin Kassam, the group's military wing.

The IDF commander said the fact that Mansi was personally involved in attacking Israeli troops showed that the Hamas military wing was in a serious state of distress, as senior Hamas operatives would not ordinarily venture out into battlefields.
"They are afraid to come out and fight, that's why Mansi went out to fire rockets on his own," the officer said.

The IDF officer also said that entire companies of Hamas had been completely wiped out, and some Hamas fighters had gone AWOL or fled battlefields.

These are excellent signs that the will of the Hamas jihadists is waning - one has to believe that, with each day the offensive by the IDF continues, the fighting will of Hamas diminishes. We already know that communications between Hamas leadership and its commanders and field jihadists is all but non-existent as the leaders have tossed their cell phones out of fear of detection by the IDF. So, the field commanders end up with half a dozen of their fighters in a basement of a building, surrounded by IDF tanks and troops and no communication - that's going to lead to some fear, confusion and laying down of weapons and all out fleeing.

Senior Hamas operative killed whilst trying to attack troops

A senior commander of IDF operations in the Strip said that Mansi was the head of the Gaza Strip rocket division, and was Mansi was previously involved in dozens of rocket attacks against Israel in recent weeks.
He was also said to be a close associate of Hizbullah, and was known to receive information from the group on a regular basis, including learning how to fire rockets.
The IDF commander said the fact that Mansi was personally involved in attacking Israeli troops showed that the Hamas military wing was in a serious state of distress, as senior Hamas operatives would not ordinarily venture out into battlefields.

The officer also said that Hamas had replicated nature reserves that the IDF found in southern Lebanon in 2006, with built-up urban areas in Gaza City. The group was said to have built up tunnel systems in such a manner that if the IDF deepened its operation into the city, it would encounter face-to-face and hand-to-hand resistance.
Meanwhile, the IDF announced that at least 300 Hamas operatives have been killed since the ground offensive stage of Operation Cast Lead was launched a week ago. The IDF estimate was backed up by intelligence.
Also Saturday, IAF planes dropped leaflets warning Gaza residents of an escalation in attacks, as southern Israel came under more Palestinian rocket fire.
"The IDF will escalate the operation in the Gaza Strip," the leaflets said in Arabic. "The IDF is not working against the people of Gaza but against Hamas and the terrorists only. Stay safe by following our orders."
The leaflets urged Gaza residents not to help Hamas, and to stay away from its members.
The Israeli military said more than 15 terrorists were killed in fighting overnight Friday. It said aircraft attacked more than 40 targets including 10 rocket-launching sites, weapons-storage facilities, smuggling tunnels, an anti-aircraft missile launcher and gunmen.