Jerusalem: Hamas confirmed the death of Mohammed Deif, head of its military wing and one of the alleged masterminds of the Oct. 7 attack, six months after Israel announced he was killed in an airstrike in Gaza.
It was Hamas’ first statement on his condition since the Israeli military announced last August that he was killed in southern Gaza the month before. Hamas also confirmed the deaths of four other members. Arab television networks cut into live streams of the Palestinian prisoner release to carry a press conference delivered by Abu Obeida, the spokesman for Hamas’ armed wing, who confirmed the death of Deif.
For years, Deif topped Israel’s most-wanted list and survived a string of Israeli assassination attempts while not showing his face in public for decades. Deif was considered iconic among Hamas fighters and particularly hard to replace. But Israel has eliminated Hamas’ leadership in the past, only to see the deeply entrenched group continue fighting Israel.
Over the past two weeks of the ceasefire, Hamas has projected dominance as the main Palestinian power in Gaza despite the Israeli military’s stated goal of destroying and dislodging the organization. Dozens of uniformed, gun-toting Hamas militants have welcomed displaced Palestinians back home to their homes in the north, popped back up on the streets as policemen and featured prominently in the chaotic handovers of Israeli hostages to the Red Cross.
The other militant leaders confirmed as dead by Hamas include: Marwan Issa, the second-in-command to Deif, who also helped mastermind the Oct. 7 assault on southern Israel; and Rafaa Salameh, the Hamas commander in the southern city of Khan Younis. Israel had announced their deaths in targeted strikes last year.
