Israel Confirms Death of Hamas Military Chief in July Strike

The Israeli military has confirmed that Mohammed Deif, the military chief of Hamas, was killed in an airstrike in the Gaza Strip last month. Deif was reportedly targeted in a strike on a compound in the Khan Younis area on July 13. While Hamas has yet to confirm Deif’s death, Israeli authorities assert he was one of the key figures behind the October 7 attacks in southern Israel, which resulted in 1,200 deaths and 251 hostages being taken.

Gaza’s Hamas-run health authorities initially reported that the airstrike killed over 90 people but denied that Deif was among them. Deif was considered the second-ranking Hamas official in Gaza, following Yahya Sinwar, the group’s leader in the territory. Israel’s Defense Minister, Yoav Gallant, called Deif’s death a “significant milestone” in dismantling Hamas, stating that the group is “disintegrating.”

The confirmation of Deif’s death marks the end of a turbulent week in the ongoing Israel-Gaza conflict, raising concerns about a potential broader regional war. The situation escalated further when 12 Israeli children and young people were killed on Saturday after a rocket struck a football field in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu attributed the attack to Lebanon-based Hezbollah and promised they would “pay a heavy price.”

In retaliation, Israel conducted an airstrike on Beirut on Tuesday, killing senior Hezbollah commander Fuad Shukr and four others, including two children. Just hours later, Hamas’s political leader Ismael Haniyeh was killed in a strike on a building in Tehran during his visit to Iran’s capital. Israel has not directly commented on Haniyeh’s death.