Hamas Fighters Display Mix of Swagger and Fear

“I’m a civilian, and I’m a fighter,” he said.

The fighter who wore glasses argued that the Israeli forces had pressed them into such a small territory that civilians were just about everywhere, so it was hard not to operate near them.

“Where do we go?” he asked. “There are no other places.”

Senior fighters are mostly in hiding, the fighters said. Many have not moved for days, staying in basements or bunkers. With limited access to phone networks, in part because of fear that signals will draw missile fire, some have been cut off altogether during the military operation, and sit alone.