Israel army says Hamas military chief Deif killed in earlier Gaza strike

Israel army says Hamas military chief Deif killed in earlier Gaza strike. Hamas denied Deif was among the July 13 fatalities, Israel’s military offensive since then has killed 39,480 people.

The army said Thursday that Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif was killed in an attack last month in Khan Yunis in the southern Gaza Strip.

The army’s confirmation of Deif’s killing came a day after the Iranian Revolutionary Guard and Hamas announced in Tehran that they had killed Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh.

“The IDF (Israeli army) announces that IDF warplanes attacked the Khan Yunis area on July 13, 2024, and that intelligence analysis confirms that Mohammed Deif was eliminated in the attack,” a military statement said.

“Deif initiated, planned and carried out the October 7 massacre,” the army said of Hamas’ resistance movement in southern Israel.

Health authorities in the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip said more than 90 people were killed in the July 13 attack, but Hamas denied that Deif was among them. The 2,000-pound bomb left a huge crater around the house where Deif reportedly took refuge with one of the council members.

Deif, head of Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, has been one of Israel’s most wanted men for nearly three decades and has been on the U.S. list of “international terrorists” since 2015.

The military said Deif carried out several attacks against Israel over the years.

The military said Deif worked with Yahya Sinwar, a leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

It added that “during the war, he issued orders and instructions to Hamas’ military officials and directed Hamas’ terrorist activities in the Gaza Strip.” According to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip Health Ministry, 39,480 people have been killed in Israeli attacks so far.