Palestinians collect close to the our bodies of their relations killed within the Israeli bombardment of the Gaza Strip, at a hospital morgue in Deir al-Balah, on Saturday.
Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
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Abdel Kareem Hana/AP
TEL AVIV — Highly effective Israeli airstrikes killed dozens of Palestinians and wounded many extra Saturday in southern Gaza, officers mentioned. An Israeli army official mentioned the goal was the pinnacle of the Hamas army wing, Mohammed Deif. However there was no quick phrase on his standing.
The Israelis bombed the town of Khan Younis and the close by space of al-Muwasi, which has been designated a humanitarian secure zone by the Israeli army and the place 1000’s of displaced Palestinians are sheltering.
Greater than 70 Palestinians have been killed within the bombings on the two places, lots of them civilians, in response to witnesses and the Gaza Well being Ministry. Many extra have been wounded. This was the newest assault in a collection of ongoing Israeli air operations directed at Hamas, however which have additionally inflicted heavy civilian casualties.
Shortly after the strike, reviews started circulating that the goal was Deif, a shadowy determine who has led the army arm of Hamas for greater than twenty years and has survived a number of Israeli makes an attempt to kill him.
In a briefing, an Israeli army official, talking on situation of anonymity, mentioned the assault focused Deif, in addition to one other senior Hamas commander, Rafah Salameh. The official added that the army struck an “operational compound” that was surrounded by bushes, small buildings and sheds, which supplied cowl and made it tough to surveil.
The Israeli army mentioned it was nonetheless assessing the strike and supplied no info on Deif.
Hamas mentioned in an announcement that Israel was making “false claims merely to cowl up the extent of the horrific bloodbath.” The assertion didn’t point out Deif.
The 2 high Hamas figures in Gaza are Yahya Sinwar, the group’s political chief within the territory, and Deif, who runs the army wing, the al-Qassam Brigades.
Israel says these are the 2 Hamas leaders most liable for orchestrating the Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel that killed some 1,200 folks and took greater than 2OO hostages. That assault ignited the present conflict in Gaza during which greater than 38,000 Palestinians have been killed, in response to the Gaza Well being Ministry.
Shortly after the October assault, a Hamas TV channel launched a recording claiming to point out Deif. “Sufficient is sufficient,” the determine within the video mentioned. He appeared solely as a silhouette.
Whereas Sinwar appeared publicly earlier than Oct. 7, Deif has remained out of sight for many years. He was jailed by Israel for a bit over a 12 months in 1989-90, however was launched. He has run the Hamas army wing since 2002, when his predecessor was killed in an Israeli air strike in Gaza Metropolis.
Again then, Deif was generally known as a grasp bomb-maker who supplied the arsenal for Hamas’ suicide bombing marketing campaign. He is additionally credited for serving to develop the Hamas rockets, which may now attain all the way in which from Gaza to Tel Aviv.
Israel has tried to kill him many occasions and he has reportedly suffered quite a few accidents, together with the lack of an eye fixed. His spouse and two of their babies have been killed in a 2014 airstrike supposed for Deif in Gaza.
His nom de guerre “Deif” means “visitor” in Arabic, referring to the extensively held perception that he by no means stays in a single place for lengthy, at all times altering places in an try to remain a step forward of the Israelis.
