Senior Hamas, Islamic Jihad figures killed in Israeli military operations

The announcement came after Hamas fired three rockets at central Israel earlier in the day, the first such barrage in months.

By Ehud Amiton, TPS

Three senior figures from Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad were eliminated, the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) confirmed on Thursday.

Rashid Jahjouh, the head of Hamas’s General Security Apparatus was killed alongside Ayman Atsila, who headed Hamas’s General Security Apparatus in the Khan Yunis region.

The General Security Apparatus, a key component of Hamas’s operations, is responsible for identifying and eliminating “collaborators,” ensuring the safety of Hamas leaders, and providing intelligence for the organization’s terrorist activities against Israel.

According to the IDF, Jahjouh played a significant role in spreading propaganda to legitimize Hamas’s rule in Gaza.

In a separate operation, the IDF and Shin Bet also eliminated Ismail Abd al-Aal, a senior figure in Islamic Jihad’s weapons smuggling network. Abd al-Aal was responsible for orchestrating the movement of military equipment and weapons into Gaza through a covert smuggling network.

Other senior Hamas leaders killed since Israel resumed widespread airstrikes on Hamas positions on Tuesday include Yasser Muhammad Harb Musa who held the security portfolio in Hamas’s politburo; Muhammad Jamatzi, chairman of Hamas’s Emergency Movement Committee; Essam al-Dalis, head of Hamas’s Gaza government; Mahmoud Marzouk Ahmed abu Watfa, who was responsible for the terror group’s internal security apparatus; and Ahmed Amar Abdullah Alhata who was Hamas’s Minister of Justice.

The announcement came after Hamas fired three rockets at central Israel earlier in the day, the first such barrage in months.

Also on Thursday, IDF forces raided northern Gaza’s coastal area near Beit Lahia, marking their first ground operation there in two months — areas vacated two months ago as part of the temporary ceasefire.

The IDF warned residents of Gaza to avoid the Netzarim Corridor as ground operations expanded. The Netzarim corridor is a roughly seven-km-road running from east to west, that bisects the Strip.

It crosses from Israel, at a point between Kibbutz Be’eri and Kibbutz Nahal Oz, and stretches to the Mediterranean. Israel’s withdrawal from the Netzarim Corridor was a key Hamas ceasefire demand.

Airstrikes launched by Israel on Tuesday ended a two-month ceasefire between Israel and the Iran-backed terror group.

Hamas insisted on the original ceasefire terms, which called for Israel’s full withdrawal from Gaza and a permanent end to the war in exchange for the remaining hostages.

However, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has repeatedly vowed to continue operations until Hamas is dismantled. Talks over phase two of the agreement, set to begin February 3, never took place.

Despite this, the ceasefire held for weeks as mediators sought new terms. In early March, U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff proposed extending phase one of the ceasefire in exchange for the release of five hostages.

However, he dismissed Hamas’s response to the proposal as unacceptable, warning of consequences if the group did not reconsider.

At least 1,180 people were killed, and 252 Israelis and foreigners were taken hostage in Hamas’s attacks on Israeli communities near the Gaza border on October 7. Of the 59 remaining hostages, 36 are believed to be dead.