The Israeli military has announced the killing of senior Hamas official, Izz al-Din Kassab, in an airstrike on Friday in Khan Younis, Gaza Strip.
Kassab was described as one of the last high-ranking members of Hamas responsible for coordinating with other groups in the region, Reuters reports.
Hamas mourned Kassab’s death in a statement, noting that he was killed alongside another official, Ayman Ayesh, during an Israeli attack on their vehicle in the enclave.
According to Hamas sources speaking to Reuters, Kassab was a local group official in Gaza but not a member of its decision-making political office.
Meanwhile, SaharaReporters had reported in October that the Israeli Army confirmed the killing of Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, in a recent attack on Gaza.
This was widely reported by Israeli media platforms making reference to senior military officials in the country.
It was gathered that the Israeli government had commenced investigating whether Sinwar was killed in a ground operation by the IDF which left three terrorists dead, with official confirmation expected in the coming hours.
In his post on X, Israeli defence minister Yoav Gallant wrote, “We will reach every terrorist – and eliminate him,” adding that soon after “our enemies cannot hide.”
Gallant attached a photograph with a red cross over a blank slot – seemingly referencing Sinwar – between Hamas commander, Muhammad Daf and Hezbollah chief, Hassan Nasrallah, each of whom were assassinated this year and were also crossed out.
Senior Israeli officials said security sources consider there to be a ‘high probability’ that Sinwar was eliminated, Israeli news outlet N12 reports, though reports have still not been confirmed.
It comes as graphic images have circulated online purporting to show the body of the terrorist leader.
The grim pictures showed what appeared to be a corpse resembling Sinwar lying on a pile of rubble, with a catastrophic head wound and injuries all over his body.