TEL AVIV, Israel – Since the terrorist attacks on Oct 7, Israel has recovered a trove of intelligence its military has used to assess the extent of Hamas’ plans, as well as its battle tactics and abilities, information that Israeli officials say has helped shape the war in the Gaza Strip.

At the sites of attacks in Israel and battles in Gaza, the military has found items that detail the location of Hamas installations and tunnels, including how the armed group operates underground, according to documents and other information made available by the Israeli military for The New York Times to review.

It also retrieved a laptop that appeared to show Hamas wanted to seize a number of previously unknown areas on Oct 7, including a military base south of Tel Aviv.

“This war, we are witnessing something we haven’t seen in previous wars: ground forces, including the armoured corps, benefiting from the real-time, precise intelligence information directly transmitted to them,” said Brigadier-General Hisham Ibrahim, the commander of the armoured corps.

“Information from intelligence units is swiftly transmitted to combat forces.”

The Israeli army launched a devastating counter-attack after Hamas-led assailants killed about 1,200 people and took approximately 240 hostages, according to the Israeli authorities.

In an effort to eliminate Hamas, the military has bombarded and invaded the enclave, in a war that has killed more than 15,000 people in Gaza, according to health authorities there.

At a briefing on Dec 4 for journalists at a military base north of Tel Aviv, the Israeli military shared some materials collected over the course of the war from dead fighters and areas inside Gaza, which it says collectively includes maps, pamphlets, transmitters, phones, video cameras, walkie-talkies, notebooks and computers.

The information is being analysed by a new Israeli unit responsible for making sure the findings quickly get to the soldiers battling Hamas, officials said.

The military provided access to key intelligence documents on the agreement that reporters would not disclose granular details, while making some information available for publication.

The journalists had to use surgical gloves to handle materials, some of which were stained with dried blood.

Materials reviewed by the Times were consistent with other known documents and gear found in the aftermath of the Oct 7 attacks, information made public by the Israeli military and found in Hamas videos.

The Times also reviewed photographs of dead Hamas members and their personal belongings, with some of the same items shared by the military at the briefing.

Some documents described extensive information about Hamas tactics and military formations.

One document viewed by the Times included the breakdown of a platoon, including the ages of the fighters in it; more than half were older than 25, indicating that this particular platoon was filled with seasoned members.

The military has also collected photographs and videos of Hamas military leaders, information that could be used for targeting purposes.

On Dec 5, the Israeli military released a picture of what it said were senior Hamas military leaders in northern Gaza enjoying food inside a tunnel, claiming that five of the men had been killed.

The military said an Israeli intelligence unit had analysed the picture after it was seized in Gaza in a tunnel near the Indonesian Hospital.

The military wing of Hamas, Al Qassam Brigades, previously confirmed that at least three of the men in the picture had been killed.

In addition, the Israeli military said it had retrieved journals that Hamas assailants had been carrying, along with other personal items.

Relying on such information, Brig-Gen Ibrahim said he had made “small adjustments to the fighting strategy” since the war started.

From a makeshift military camp in southern Israel, Brig-Gen Ibrahim oversees aspects of tank warfare, which is taking place in a densely populated area.

The 46-year-old general is one of the highest-ranking officers from Israel’s Druse community, an Arabic-speaking religious minority.

Since the ceasefire ended last week, Israeli soldiers have been engaged in heavy fighting in southern Gaza near the city of Khan Younis, as well as the northern residential neighbourhoods of Jabalia and Shajaiyeh.

Israeli tanks have played a key role in the battles. More than a dozen Israeli soldiers have been killed since the fighting has resumed.

Brig-Gen Ibrahim is intensely focused on protecting soldiers and tanks, and outwitting Hamas.

He said he has six small teams on the ground in Gaza to gain insights from different units, the type of materials shared with the Times.

He said “learning bulletins” are sent out to the forces every few days.

He added that he has gleaned lessons from Russia’s war in Ukraine, particularly how Russian tanks in Ukraine at times became easy targets.

To adapt to the threat of Hamas drones, he said Israel rushed to make sure that tanks were outfitted with canopies over turrets.

Known as pergolas, Brig-Gen Ibrahim said they already proved to be effective deterrents, explaining that Hamas drones appear to avoid tanks with the canopies since they provide protection against warheads.

He described the pergola as a low-tech measure used to defend against drones, while adding that the military has high-tech advantages, including a defence system known as Trophy.

The materials highlight other challenges for Brig-Gen Ibrahim and his team.

Hamas booklets, viewed by the Times, show the weak spots of Israel’s Merkava tanks operating inside Gaza, with their huge 120mm cannons, as well as Israeli armoured personnel carriers.

Hamas fighters also have instructions on which type of warhead to use against Israeli armour. He said the Hamas fighters have mostly relied on rocket-propelled grenade launchers in attacks on armour.

Hamas fighters, the general said, will regroup after suffering bad losses and return to fight in destroyed areas – seemingly lost ground.

The military has adapted to avoid Hamas improvised explosive devices. Similar devices were used to deadly effect in Iraq by militias against US forces. NYTIMES