Israeli military eliminates one of the few remaining senior Hamas officials in Gaza

One of Hamas’ few remaining top officials in Gaza was eliminated in an Israeli aerial strike on Friday, Israel announced on Friday.

Izz al-Din Kassab, who served as the head of national relations in the Hamas terrorist group’s political bureau, was eliminated together with his aide, Ayman Ayesh, in Khan Younis. according to an announcement from Israel Defense Forces and the Shin Bet domestic intelligence agency.

“Kassab was a significant source of power and, by virtue of his role, was responsible for the organization’s strategic and military relations with other factions in the Gaza Strip. He held the authority to direct the execution of terror attacks against the State of Israel,” the IDF said in an official statement.

Multiple Hamas leaders have been hiding around Khan Younis in southern Gaza. In July, the Israeli military eliminated top Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif, who was hiding in an area alongside Rafa’a Salameh, Hamas' regional commander. Deif, who played a central role in the Oct. 7 massacre that claimed the lives of 1,200 women, children and men last year, had been wanted by Israeli authorities in connection with numerous prior terrorist attacks."

“After an intelligence check, it can be confirmed that the attack killed Muhammad Deif, the commander of the military wing and number two in the terrorist organization Hamas in Gaza, who planned and carried out the murderous massacre on October 7,” the IDF stated.

While Hamas quickly confirmed that Salameh was killed, it refrained from announcing Deif’s death for months, most likely because of his key role in the terror group’s military wing. However, on Saturday Hamas officials admitted Deif had been killed in the Israeli aerial strike in July, the Arabic-language paper Asharq al-Awsat reported.

Meanwhile, Israeli officials are working to secure the release of the remaining 97 Israeli hostages who have been held by Hamas terrorists in Gaza for over a year. Due to the difficult living conditions and harsh treatment, it is currently unclear how many of the hostages are still alive.

Israeli and American officials assess that Hamas’ top leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, was not interested in reaching an agreement before he was eliminated in October. Some believe he had hoped that the conflict would escalate into a full-scale war between Israel and the Iranian-led axis, including Hezbollah in Lebanon and the Houthis in Yemen.

When the Israeli military eliminated Sinwar, hope grew for progress in the hostage negotiations. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu offered to spare the lives of the remaining Hamas officials and fighters in exchange for the release of the hostages. However, Hamas’ deputy leader in Qatar, Khalil al-Hayya, rejected the offer and vowed that no hostage would be released until the end of the war in Gaza.

It is currently unclear whether Hamas has changed its position on the hostages. However, Mossad chief David Barnea reportedly informed the families of the hostages on Friday that it was incorrect that Hamas had rejected a recent Egyptian proposal for a 12-day ceasefire in exchange for a limited agreement where four Israeli hostages would be released. The four hostages would be either elderly, sick or women. In exchange, Israel would reportedly release some 100 convicted terrorists from Israeli prisons.