IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari delivered a statement to the media and referred to the war against Hamas and the airstrike on a mosque under which terrorists hid themselves in Jenin.

"They desecrate holy places in the hope that they can get us to attack them. They use the civilian population and the symbols of Islam as a shield," he said.

Hagari said that the terror cell hiding under the mosque was planning a “murderous terror attack inside Israel” and was a "ticking time bomb."

"We increased the attacks overnight and eliminated dozens of Hamas terrorists - anyone who took part in the massacre is a top priority for elimination," he said.

"We will go to the next stage of the fighting under the best conditions - in accordance with the guidance of the political echelon," he added.

Hagari said that 212 families have been informed that their loved ones were abducted to Gaza and that 307 families of soldiers have been informed that their loved ones have fallen in battle against Hamas.

The IDF overnight Saturday conducted an aerial strike on a terror compound the Al-Ansar Mosque in Jenin. The mosque contained a cell of Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror operatives that were responsible for several terror attacks over the last months, and were organizing an additional imminent terror attack.

One of the terrorists killed in the strike was named as Osama Bani Padel, who planned the murder of Shai Nigreker and his son Aivad Nir in Huwara in August.

The terrorist cell also carried out a terror attack on October 14 in the area of the security fence, where an explosive device was detonated by a cellular activation of terror forces who arrived at the scene.