Israel's Navy has been carrying out secret operations inside Gaza using its new amphibious ships, two senior naval officers of the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) have admitted.
Speaking to The Jerusalem Post for the first time, Lt Commander "G", the commander of the Ashdod base for the Navy's Squadron 921, said these ships were not only capable of carrying hundreds of soldiers, but also heavy vehicles and large amounts of supplies.
"These landing craft are about 95 meters long, 20 meters wide, and weigh 2,500 tons," Lt-Cmdr G explained. They are specially designed to move soldiers, vehicles, and supplies directly from the sea onto land. These ships allow troops to launch offensive operations in areas that were previously hard to reach.
For decades, the IDF lacked such modern ships. Without them, soldiers could only attack from land, be flown in by air, or be transported by sea in very small numbers. There was also no way to quickly resupply forward positions with large amounts of supplies or intact vehicles in areas where terrain or enemy positions made land access impossible.
With the introduction of Squadron 921 and its new ambitious ships, the Israeli Navy now has the capability to move troops and equipment quickly.
He revealed that in 2024, several Nachshon-class amphibious ships were used by the Israeli Navy to move behind enemy lines in Gaza, surprising three heavily armed Hamas units. The units included fighters equipped with rocket-propelled grenades.
Another key officer, Lt.-Commander "R", who works in the IDF Logistics Command, explained that land vehicles cannot carry as many supplies as the Nachshon ships can. He added that the vessels are sometimes essential to support brigades of up to 1,000 soldiers or divisions of up to 5,000.
The ships operate under tight secrecy. Even for the 2024 Gaza operation, Lt-Commander G did not reveal the exact landing locations.
The Nachshon-class ships have been used many times in secret operations, including Middle East 2023-25 War.
When asked if these ships have been used in Lebanon or Syria, Lt-Commander G said they cannot talk about those missions, but added that the Navy is capable of carrying out any missions it's ordered to do.
