Reuters via Israeli ArmyHamas military leader Mohammed Deif
NOS Nieuws•gisteren, 17:30
Mohammed Deif was killed in an attempted assassination by Israel, the Israeli army claims on X. Based on their intelligence, they now have confirmation of this. On July 13, a major attack was carried out on a tent camp near Khan Younis in Gaza, where he was said to be hiding.
Shortly after the attack on the designated humanitarian zone, in which at least 90 people were killed, Israel announced that Deif had been targeted. Prime Minister Netanyahu said at the time that they were not certain that he had been killed. Hamas said in a response to Telegram today that they do not confirm.
Netanyahu says that by killing Deif, Israel is adhering to the “simple principle that we have set for ourselves: whoever harms us, we will harm.” The prime minister points out that Deif has been at the top of a list of most wanted terrorists for years.
‘Milestone’
Israeli Defense Minister Gallant called it “an important milestone in the process of dismantling Hamas.” According to Gallant, Deif’s death proves that Hamas is falling apart. Israel has tried to assassinate Deif seven times before, according to Israeli media, but he has always escaped. He has been on Israel’s most wanted list since 1995.
Deif was the leader of Hamas’s military wing, the al-Qassam brigades, which is considered terrorist by the West. He was one of its founders in the 1990s. Deif operated under the radar and was not seen in public during all those years. Partly under his leadership, Hamas transformed into a large paramilitary army with tens of thousands of fighters.
Foreign editor Eliane Lamper:
“As leader of the military branch, Deif was an influential person for Hamas, even more so than the liquidated Haniyeh. At the same time, Hamas knows that it can always happen that a leader is eliminated. So there is always someone ready to replace such a leader. Because he has escaped attacks so often, he has acquired a mythical status.
Israel sees this assassination as a major victory, placing Deif among the many political enemies that Israel has eliminated throughout history. But it is questionable how much effect Deif’s death will have on the course of the war in Gaza, because an end does not seem to be in sight yet.”
AFPMohammed Deif is shown here in the center of an outdated photo, between Hamas leaders Haniyeh and Sinwar
Under Deif’s leadership, several attacks were carried out on Israeli territory. He is seen by Israel as the mastermind behind the terrorist attack on October 7, together with political leader Yahya Sinwar.
After that massacre, Prime Minister Netanyahu promised to hunt down and kill all Hamas leaders. Yesterday, Ismail Haniyeh, Hamas’ political leader in Qatar, was liquidated in the Iranian capital Tehran. By doing so on Iranian foreign soil, Israel took a great risk of further escalation in the region. In January, Hamas leader Saleh al-Arouri was liquidated in Beirut.
