International

Hamas leader tied to Oct. 7 attack planning killed in latest strike: Israel

Comments:

by Sarah Davis - 05/16/26 9:25 AM ET

Comments:

Link copied

by Sarah Davis - 05/16/26 9:25 AM ET

Comments:

Link copied

NOW PLAYING

Israel announced Saturday that its latest strikes in Gaza killed a top strategist that helped carried out Hamas’s Oct. 7, 2023, attack on the nation, which sparked a wider war in the region.

The Israel Security Agency (ISA) and Israel Defense Forces (IDF) shared in a joint statement that the country’s armed forces conducted a “precise strike” in Gaza on Friday, killing Izz al-Din al-Haddad.

“Haddad is one of the last senior commanders in Hamas’ military wing who directed the planning and execution of the October 7th massacre and the management of combat operations against IDF troops,” they said. “His elimination joins the eliminations of numerous other senior Hamas military wing commanders during the war.”

Nearly 1,200 people were killed during Hamas’s initial attack and 250 were taken hostage. Israel responded with retaliatory strikes, killing over 72,000 people, according to local health officials. At least 440 more Palestinians died from enforced malnutrition during the conflict.

Al-Haddad took over Hamas’s armed forces last year after Israel killed the group’s military leader, Mohammed Sinwar.

Two IDF officials told The New York Times that Israel struck a building in Gaza as part of this Friday strike, and that al-Haddad was most likely killed within that structure.

This would be the highest-ranking official Israel has targeted since a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas took effect last October.

Under this U.S.-brokered agreement, Hamas agreed to release the total remaining Israeli hostages, Israel committed to releasing Palestinian prisoners and the two sides vowed to cease hostilities against one another.

The top diplomat overseeing this agreement, Nickolay Mladenov, said on Wednesday that the ceasefire was stalled, citing a dispute over Hamas’s disarmament. He noted that his office is addressing violations of the deal from both sides every day.

“You cannot build a future with armed groups running the streets, hiding in tunnels and stockpiling weapons,” Mladenov told reporters in Jerusalem. “You cannot deliver reconstruction with militias on every corner.”

Add as preferred source on Google