Israel announces killing of senior Hamas leaders in Gaza airstrikes

New Delhi, Oct 3: The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) revealed that a joint operation carried out three months ago by the IDF and the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) led to the killing of three senior Hamas leaders in Gaza.

Among those killed was Rawhi Mushtaha, identified by the IDF as the head of Hamas’s government in Gaza. He was joined by Sameh al-Siraj, who was responsible for security within Hamas’s political bureau, and Sami Oudeh, the commander of Hamas’s General Security Mechanism, overseeing security operations.

The IDF stated that the three leaders were hiding in an underground bunker in northern Gaza and were targeted in airstrikes. According to Israeli authorities, Hamas refrained from announcing the deaths to maintain the morale of its operatives. Hamas is yet to react.

In its statement, the IDF described Mushtaha as “one of Hamas’s most senior operatives” who had significant influence over the group’s military strategies and deployments. The announcement adds to the list of high-ranking Hamas figures killed over the past year, following the unprecedented attack on Israel by Hamas on October 7 and the subsequent war in Gaza.

In related incidents, the Israeli military reported in August that it had killed Wissam Khazem, a Hamas leader, during a major operation in the West Bank. Additionally, in July, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an explosion in Tehran, an incident Iran blamed on Israel, though Israeli officials did not confirm involvement.