Israel says it has killed a top Hamas commander in Gaza
Israel describes Raad Saad as head of the weapons production headquarters of Hamas's military wing, who led the group's "force build-up", and one of the "architects" of the October 7, 2023, attack that sparked the war in Gaza.
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JERUSALEM: Israel on Saturday (Dec 13) said it killed the head of weapons production in Hamas's military in Gaza, after an explosive device detonated and wounded two soldiers in the territory's south.
"In response to the activation of a Hamas explosive device that wounded our forces today... Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz instructed the elimination of the terrorist Raad Saad, head of Hamas' force-buildup," the premier and the defence minister said in a joint statement.
The Israeli military described Saad as "one of the architects" of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza. The military earlier on Saturday said two reserve soldiers were lightly injured after the device detonated "during an operation to clear the area" in southern Gaza.
Hamas did not confirm the death of Raed Saad. It said in a statement that a civilian vehicle had been struck outside Gaza City and asserted it was a violation of the ceasefire that took effect on Oct 10.
Saad served as the Hamas official in charge of manufacturing and previously led the militant group's operations division. The Israeli statement said that he had been “engaged in rebuilding the terrorist organisation” in a violation of the ceasefire.
The Israeli strike west of Gaza City killed four people, according to an Associated Press journalist who saw their bodies arrive at Shifa Hospital. Another three were wounded, according to Al-Awda hospital.
ISRAEL DEMANDS RETURN OF LAST HOSTAGE
Israel and Hamas have repeatedly accused each other of truce violations.
Israeli airstrikes and shootings in Gaza have killed at least 386 Palestinians since the ceasefire took hold, according to Palestinian health officials.
Israel has said recent strikes are in retaliation for militant attacks on its soldiers, and that troops have fired on Palestinians who approached the “Yellow Line” between the Israeli-controlled majority of Gaza and the rest of the territory.
Israel has demanded that Palestinian militants return the remains of the final hostage, Ran Gvili, from Gaza and called it a condition of moving to the second and more complicated phase of the ceasefire, which lays out a vision for ending Hamas' rule and seeing the rebuilding of a demilitarised Gaza under international supervision.
The initial Hamas-led 2023 attack on southern Israel killed around 1,200 people and took 251 hostages. Almost all hostages or their remains have been returned in ceasefires or other deals.
Israel’s two-year campaign in Gaza has killed more than 70,000 Palestinians - roughly half of them women and children - according to the territory’s Health Ministry, which does not distinguish between militants and civilians in its count.
The ministry, which operates under the Hamas-run government, is staffed by medical professionals and maintains detailed records seen as generally reliable by the international community.
Much of Gaza has been destroyed, and most of the population of over 2 million people has been displaced. Humanitarian aid entry into the territory continues to be below the level set by the ceasefire terms.
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