A senior Hamas commander was killed in an air strike in Gaza on Saturday, the Israeli military has said.
Khan Younis Brigade commander Rafa Salama died in the attack, according to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).
In a statement, the Israeli army said Salama was one of the “masterminds” of the 7 October attack and a close associate of Mohammed Deif, the top commander of Hamas’s military wing.
The IDF said that Salama’s death “significantly impedes Hamas’ military capabilities”.
Israel has said the attack was targeting senior Hamas leaders, but Hamas says the claim is “false” and aimed at “justifying” the attack.
The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said on Saturday that Israel’s strike on a camp for displaced people in Khan Younis killed at least 90 Palestinians and injured 289 others.
It is not known whether Deif was killed. The IDF said he was also targeted in the strike.
Deif has been among Israel’s most wanted men for decades and is blamed by Israeli authorities for the killings of multiple civilians and soldiers.
In a joint statement reporting Salama’s “elimination”, the IDF and the Israel Security Agency (ISA) said Salama joined Hamas in the early 1990s and was appointed to the position of commander of the Khan Younis Brigade under the command of Mohammed Sinwar.
Residents said they witnessed at least five “big warplanes bombing in the middle of Al Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis”.
Most of the injured were sent to Nasser hospital.
However, according to officials and medics, the facility is “no longer able to function” as doctors are “overwhelmed with large numbers of casualties”.
Speaking to Newshour on the BBC World Service, Dr Mohammed Abu Rayya, who is at a hospital dealing with the aftermath of the attack, said the majority of those injured were suffering from multiple shrapnel wounds.
He said it was like being in “hell”, adding that many of the casualties were civilians, notably women and children.
A Hamas official, cited by Reuters, called the attack a “grave escalation” that showed Israel was not interested in reaching a ceasefire agreement.
The ceasefire negotiations being held in Qatar and Egypt ended on Friday without success, the BBC understands.
Source Agencies
