US security official confirms the death of Hamas No. 3, Marwan Issa

Hamas has privately confirmed Issa’s death, Palestinian sources told Israel’s Kan News.

By JNS

The United States on Monday confirmed that an Israeli airstrike in Gaza last week killed senior Hamas commander Marwan Issa.

“Hamas’s number three, Marwan Issa, was killed in an Israeli operation last week,” U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said during a White House press briefing.

“The rest of the top leaders are in hiding, likely deep in the Hamas tunnel network, and justice will come for them too. We are helping to ensure that,” he added.

Jerusalem has not officially confirmed Issa’s death, but security officials told government ministers at Friday’s Security Cabinet meeting that signs indicated the targeted strike was successful.

Hamas has privately confirmed Issa’s death, Palestinian sources told Israel’s Kan News, according to a Sunday report, adding that the Hamas co-founder and deputy head of its military wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, was hiding in a tunnel when he was killed and that his body is still buried underneath the rubble.

Razi Abu Tomeh, commander of Hamas’s Central Camp Brigade, also died in the strike, according to the Kan report.

The air strike took place at the Nuseirat refugee camp in the central Gaza Strip on the night of March 9.

IDF operation in Shifa Hospital area continues

Israeli special forces are continuing to operate in the area of the Shifa Hospital compound in Gaza City as part of a targeted raid that began early Monday after intelligence showed that Hamas terrorists had regrouped there.

A military source told Walla! News that IDF activity is focused not just on the medical center, but also on the surrounding area, where it is estimated that dozens of terrorists could be hiding.

In a joint statement released on Monday afternoon, the IDF and Israel Security Ageny announced that during the operation, troops killed Faiq Mabhuoch, head of the Operations Directorate of Hamas’ Internal Security. He was also responsible for coordinating terrorist activities in the Gaza Strip, according to the statement.

“Faiq Mabhouh was eliminated in an encounter with the troops while armed and hiding in a compound at the Shifa Hospital, from which he operated and advanced terrorist activity. Numerous weapons were located in the room adjacent to where he was eliminated,” according to the statement.

Some 80 terrorists were arrested during the operation, and Israeli special forces took full control of the hospital compound.

Hamas forces fired on Israeli troops from within the hospital, according to the army. The terrorists used patients at the hospital as human shields, according to Israeli media reports.

One soldier was killed and another soldier was lightly wounded during the raid.