GAZA CITY, Palestine: Israel claimed on Saturday it had killed a senior Hamas military leader in an air strike on Gaza City, a claim not immediately confirmed by the Palestinian group, as Israel continued violating the US-brokered fragile ceasefire agreement.
In a military statement, Israel said Raed Saad, a senior commander in Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, was killed in an operation carried out with the Shin Bet internal security agency.
The army alleged that Saad had been working to rebuild Hamas’s military capabilities following more than two years of the relentless Israeli bombardment campaign in Gaza.
An Israeli defence official, cited by Reuters, said that Saad headed Hamas’s weapons manufacturing operations.
Israeli media also reported that the commander had been killed, though no independent confirmation was immediately available, Al Jazeera reported.
The office of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he and Defence Minister Israel Katz ordered the strike following an explosion that injured Israeli soldiers in Gaza.
Israeli strike kills four Palestinians in Gaza
Meanwhile, Gaza’s health ministry said an Israeli strike on Saturday killed at least four people and wounded more than 25 others. Al Jazeera, citing Gaza emergency services, later reported at least five fatalities.
Palestinian news agency Wafa said an Israeli drone struck a vehicle near the Nabulsi junction in western Gaza City.
Hamas condemned the Israeli strike as a “blatant violation” of the ceasefire that came into effect in October.
Who is Raed Saad?
According to a factsheet by the European Council on Foreign Relations, Saad was a member of the military council of the Qassam Brigades and served as head of its operations and production departments.
Hamas sources, cited by Al Jazeera, have described him as the armed wing’s second-in-command.
Israel has accused Saad of being one of the architects of the October 7, 2023, attacks on southern Israel.
The Israeli military said he was among the last veteran Hamas commanders still operating inside Gaza and was close to Marwan Issa, the deputy head of Hamas’s military wing.
Fragile ceasefire
Hamas said the attack showed Israel was deliberately seeking to “undermine and sabotage” the ceasefire.
It called on mediators and guarantor countries to intervene and restrain Israel.
Gaza authorities say Israel has carried out nearly 800 attacks since the ceasefire began on October 10, killing at least 386 people, in what they describe as clear breaches of the agreement.
Israel has also continued to restrict the entry of humanitarian aid. Aid group Oxfam said Israel was blocking shelter materials, fuel and water infrastructure, leaving civilians exposed to “entirely preventable harm” following Storm Byron.
On Friday, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly adopted a resolution calling on Israel to allow unrestricted humanitarian access to Gaza, halt attacks on UN facilities and comply with international law as an occupying power.
