Hamas confirms assassination of military chief Mohammed Deif

GAZA: Hamas armed wing or al-Qassam Brigades announced the killing of its elusive military leader Mohammed Deif and deputy military commander Marwan Issa in combat.

“The Al-Qassam Brigades announce to our great people the martyrdom of a group of distinguished fighters and heroic commanders… commander Mohammed Deif, chief of staff of the Al-Qassam Brigades (and) commander Marwan Issa, deputy chief of staff,” the armed wing of Hamas announced. Israel had accused Deif of being one of the masterminds of the October 7 attack.

Mohammed Deif, one of the masterminds of the Oct. 7, 2023 assault on southern Israel, was an elusive figure who had a long and secretive career in the Palestinian group and had been sought by Israel for decades.

Deif had survived seven previous Israeli assassination attempts, the most recent in 2021. In the months since Oct. 7, he was believed to have been directing military operations from the tunnels and backstreets of Gaza, alongside senior colleagues.

Rising up the Hamas ranks over 30 years, Deif developed the group’s network of tunnels and its bomb-making expertise. He had topped Israel’s most wanted list for decades, held personally responsible for the deaths of dozens of Israelis in suicide bombings.

Hamas sources said Deif lost an eye and sustained serious injuries in one leg in one of Israel’s past attempts to kill him. His survival over the years made him a folk hero for some Palestinians.

He and two other Hamas leaders in Gaza formed a three-man military council that planned the Oct. 7 raid, in which 1,200 people were killed and more than 250 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies, in the bloodiest attack in Israel’s 75-year history.

After the attack, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government vowed to kill the three – Yahya Sinwar, Hamas’ leader in Gaza, Deif, head of the military wing, and Marwan Issa his deputy, who was reported killed by Israel in March.