The Israeli military announced Thursday that the head of Hamas’s armed wing, Mohammed Deif, had been “eliminated” in a July 13 strike in the Gaza Strip, where Israel has been at war with the Palestinian Islamist movement for nearly ten months.
“The Israeli army announces that on July 13, 2024, warplanes carried out strikes in the Khan Younis region, and following intelligence analysis, it can be confirmed that Mohammed Deif was eliminated,” a military statement said.
“Deif led, planned and executed the October 7 massacre,” the army added in reference to the unprecedented attack by Hamas on Israeli soil, which resulted in the death of 1,197 people, mostly civilians, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli data.
The Hamas government’s health ministry in the Gaza Strip said the July 13 strikes killed more than 90 people in the Khan Younis area.
But Hamas denied that Deif was among the victims.
The leader of the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, Deif was one of Israel’s most wanted men for nearly three decades and had been on the US list of “international terrorists” since 2015.
According to the Israeli military, Deif carried out several attacks against Israel over the years and operated with Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader in Gaza.
“During the war, he (Deif) commanded Hamas’ terrorist activities in the Gaza Strip by giving orders and instructions to senior members of Hamas’ military wing,” the army added.
In the October 7 attack, 251 people were abducted, 111 of whom are still being held captive in Gaza, among whom 39 have died, according to the army.
In response, Israel launched a major offensive in Gaza that has so far killed 39,480 people, according to data from the Hamas-run Gaza government’s health ministry, which does not provide details on the number of civilian and combatant deaths.