Hamas has officially confirmed that the head of its terrorist army, Mohammed Deif, was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza on July 13 alongside Khan Yunis Brigade commander Rafa'a Salameh.
Claiming the organisation has been unable to ascertain the status of its leaders due to "security caveats imposed by the conditions of battle," Hamas propaganda chief Abu Obeida in a statement also confirmed the deaths during the past 15 months of war of top terrorists Marwan Issa, Ghazi Abu Tama’a, Raad Thabet, Ayman Nofal and Ahmed Ghandour.
Hamas had previously only issued formal confirmations of the deaths of Nofal and Ghandour.
Hamas called on Palestinians in the West Bank to take to the streets following the confirmation of the deaths of its top leaders, in what some experts said was an attempt to further inflame tensions at a time when Israel is engaged in major counter-terrorism operations in the area.
The Israel Defence Forces and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) confirmed the successful targeted killing of Deif, who had led Hamas's Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades "military" wing since 2002, in an Aug. 1 statement.
"After an intelligence check, it can be confirmed that the attack killed Mohammed Deif, the commander of the military arm and number two in the terrorist organisation Hamas in Gaza, which planned and carried out the murderous massacre on Oct. 7," the joint statement announced.
Deif and Salameh were targeted in a structure above ground, close to the al-Mawasi humanitarian zone and the southern Gazan city of Khan Yunis.
The IDF confirmed the day after the attack that Salameh was killed.
Deif, 58, was the second in command in Gaza after Yahya Sinwar, who was eliminated by Israeli soldiers three months later after the two men led the planning and execution of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre of some 1,200 people, primarily Israeli Jews, in the northwestern Negev. Deif was also responsible for several bus bombing attacks in the 1990s and 2000s.
"Muhammad Deif, the 'Osama bin Laden of Gaza,' was eliminated on 13.07.24," then-Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement in August. "This is a significant milestone in the process of dismantling Hamas as a military and governing authority in Gaza, and in the achievement of the goals of this war."
"The operation was conducted precisely and professionally by the IDF and ISA [the Shin Bet]. This operation reflects the fact that Hamas is disintegrating and that Hamas terrorists may either surrender or they will be eliminated. Israel’s defense establishment will pursue Hamas terrorists—both the planners and the perpetrators of the 07.10 massacre. We will not rest until this mission is accomplished,"
