Israel has killed one of the last remaining senior Hamas leaders in the Gaza Strip, an official announced Friday night.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said in a statement that Izz al-Din Kassab, a member of Hamas’s political bureau, had been “eliminated” during an airstrike in Khan Younis.
According to the IDF, Kassab was responsible for national relations within the organization and oversaw the “coordination and connection between Hamas and other terrorist organizations in Gaza.”
He was also responsible for Hamas’ strategic and military relations with other factions in Gaza.
The IDF said Kassab “had authority to direct the execution of terrorist attacks against the State of Israel.”
Izz al-Din Kassab, a member of Hamas’s political bureau and one of the last senior leaders of the organization, has been “eliminated” during an airstrike in Khan Younis.
The IDF announced Kassab’s killing on Friday night.
The IDF released dramatic footage of the moment a truck carrying Kassab and Ayesh was precisely hit while traveling on a dirt road in Gaza City.
The car in which Kassab, responsible for national relations within Hamas, was traveling, explodes in flames.
According to the IDF, Kassab “had the authority to direct the execution of terrorist attacks against the State of Israel.”
Acrid smoke filled the air after Friday’s attack in Khan Younis.
According to Reuters, Hamas mourned the senior leader’s death in a statement, adding that he was killed along with his aide, Ayman Ayesh, in the attack.
On Friday night, the IDF released dramatic footage of the moment a truck carrying Kassab and Ayesh was precisely hit while traveling on a dirt road in the town of Khan Younis, which now lies largely in ruins. after more than a year of military operations. .
Kassab’s death comes just weeks after Israel assassinated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, who was widely considered the main architect of the October 7 attacks in which 1,200 people were killed and 250 were taken hostage by terrorists.
After confirming his death, the IDF released Sinwar’s last moments alive, filmed by a drone that entered the bombed building where he was hiding.
Sitting in a dusty chair, his head covered with a scarf to conceal his identity, Sinwar can be seen peering through the small gap in the wrap covering his face to look directly at the drone, his right hand injured by bullets.
His last act was to throw a stick at the device just seconds before being killed by Israeli forces in Gaza.
In September, Israel assassinated Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah during a massive attack on the terrorist group in Lebanon.
Many other Iranian-backed militant commanders have also been killed in recent months.
Assassinated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was widely considered the main architect of the October 7 attacks on Israel.
Israel said earlier this year that it had killed Mohammed Deif, the Hamas military chief, in an attack, although the Palestinian group has not confirmed this.
Deif was accused of working with Sinwar to plan the October 7 attack.
Kassab’s assassination today follows a promise made by Israel to tor eliminate all senior Hamas leaders.