JERUSALEM: Israel claimed on Sunday that its military had killed a senior Hamas military commander Rafa Salama in a strike on the Al-Mawasi camp for displaced Palestinians in the southern Gaza Strip. The attack resulted in a large number of civilian casualties, with 92 Palestinians killed and over 300 others injured, according to Gaza’s health ministry.
In a statement, the Israeli military confirmed that its air force had conducted the operation on Saturday, targeting Salama, who was described as a key figure within Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade. The military also to have killed Mohammed Deif, the Hamas’s military chief.
However, a Hamas official said that Mohammed Deif is alive and actively overseeing operations despite the Israeli attempt on his life.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu acknowledged the uncertainty surrounding Deif’s status, emphasizing that there was no definitive confirmation of his death.
According to the Israeli military’s account, Salama had a long history within Hamas, joining in the early 1990s and rising to prominence as a battalion commander.
Salama later assumed leadership of the Khan Younis Brigade in 2016, during which time he was reportedly responsible for orchestrating rocket launches into Israel and overseeing the construction of offensive tunnels aimed at Israeli territory.
Since October 7 last year, Israel has launched a relentless bombardment campaign in Gaza killing at least 38,584 Palestinians, mostly women and children, according to data from Gaza’s health ministry.
