The leader of Hamas’ armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Friday, the IDF has stated. Al-Haddad was one of the architects behind the 7 October massacre. He surrounded himself with hostages and was called “The Shadow”. His wife and daughter were also killed. Iran is mourning al-Haddad’s death.
In a statement on Saturday, the military said that Haddad had recently “worked to rebuild the capabilities of the terrorist organisation’s military wing and planned a series of terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers”, despite a ceasefire agreement brokered by the United States in October.
The previous leader of the Qassam Brigades was Mohammed Sinwar, brother of Hamas’ supreme leader Yahya Sinwar.
Hamas continues planning new attacks, and that gives Israel free rein to eliminate them.
The Chief of the Israeli Defence Forces, Lieutenant General Eyal Zamir, described the killing as a “significant operational achievement” and said that Israel would continue pursuing those responsible for the 7 October massacre.
Iran does not conceal that Hamas is its proxy and remains under its protection.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry on Saturday condemned the killing of the head of Hamas’ military wing, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, in an Israeli strike in Gaza.
In a statement posted by Iranian diplomatic accounts, Tehran accused Israel of carrying out a “terrorist” killing and expressed its condolences to al-Haddad and his family.
Israel possesses detailed knowledge of Hamas and knows where they are located. As long as Israel has free rein, Hamas is fighting a hopeless battle. That will remain the case so long as they adhere to the line of resistance with weapons in hand. The ceasefire agreement stipulates that Hamas is to disarm, but they refuse.
In a separate statement, the IDF said it had also killed two other Hamas terrorists who infiltrated Israel during the 7 October attack, in connection with recent strikes in the Gaza Strip. According to the information provided, Khamer Iyad Muhammad Al-Matouq and Khaled Muhammad Salem Jouda were killed in separate strikes in northern Gaza over the past two weeks.
The military stated that the two had recently attempted to carry out attacks against troops in Gaza and that they had “posed an immediate threat to the forces”.
In another strike in central Gaza on Wednesday, Abdel Rahman Mahmoud Jumaa Shafi was killed, a member of Hamas’ Bureij Battalion who, according to the military, had led attacks on troops in Gaza.
Iran and Hamas are waging the same irreconcilable struggle, and they have turned the international community against them. They have no support for continuing armed struggle. When Iran attacked neighbouring states, it forfeited its role as a neighbour that had to be tolerated.
Al-Haddad was given a public funeral on Saturday, but the funeral procession was not large.
https://www.foxnews.com/live-news/iran-war-trump-news-strait-hormuz-blockade-ceasefire-tensions-may-16
https://www.timesofisrael.com/idf-confirms-hamas-gaza-chief-izz-al-din-al-haddad-killed-in-airstrike/