An Israel Defense Forces airstrike in Gaza City’s Sheikh Radwan neighborhood killed 14 relatives of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, health authorities in the Gaza Strip claimed on Tuesday.
The terror leader’s brother and nephew were killed in the alleged strike, reports said. Haniyeh himself resides in Qatar, where he has an office under the protection of the Gulf Arab country’s government.
Shortly after the reported airstrike, terrorists in Gaza fired heavy barrages of rockets at southern and central Israel, with alarms sounding in major cities, including Rishon Letzion, Petach Tikvah, Bnei Brak, Ramat Gan and Bat Yam.
Earlier on Tuesday, Hamas said that Ayman Nofal, a member of the General Military Council of its Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, died in an IDF airstrike.
“We just eliminated Ayman Nofal, a senior Hamas operative,” the IDF confirmed in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
According to the Israeli military, “Nofal directed many attacks against Israeli civilians and besides being one of the most dominant figures in the terrorist organization, he was involved in the planning of the abduction of Gilad Shalit.”
“We won’t stop until we eliminate Hamas,” concluded the post.
We just eliminated Ayman Nofal, a senior Hamas operative.
Nofal was the Commander of Hamas’ Central Brigade in Gaza and the former Head of Military Intelligence.
Nofal directed many attacks against Israeli civilians and besides being one of the most dominant figures in the… pic.twitter.com/t686L6gSuN
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 17, 2023
The military’s ‘top priority’
Hamas terrorists killed at least 1,400 Israelis and wounded more than 4,100 in a massive offensive launched from the Gaza Strip on Oct. 7, which included the firing of thousands of rockets at Israel and the infiltration of the Jewish state by terrorist forces.
According to IDF Spokesman Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari, the IDF has defined killing senior Hamas terrorists as the military’s “top priority.”
Palestinian sources reported last week that Abdel-Fattah Diab Deif, the brother of Hamas military commander Muhammad Deif, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip.
On Oct. 9, Hamas “Economy Minister” Jawad Abu Shamala was killed in an Israeli airstrike. Abu Shamala managed the finances of the organization and earmarked the funds for financing and directing terrorism both inside and outside the Gaza Strip, according to the IDF.
He previously held security positions in the terrorist organization and led several operations aimed at harming citizens of the State of Israel, the army added.
Zakaria Abu Muammar, a senior member of the Hamas political bureau who headed the terrorist group’s National Relations Office, was killed in a separate strike.
“Abu Muammar was known to be close to [Hamas leader in Gaza] Yahya Sinwar and, as part of his position, worked to incite and act against the sovereignty of the State of Israel and endanger its residents,” the IDF noted.