GNITN - Special Edition

Israel At War – Day 281

Huge Terrorist Strike

Hamas Leader Allegedly Killed

According to a report from The Jerusalem Post a high leader in Hamas was targeted and may have been taken out:

Mohammad Deif, the leader of the Izzadin al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas's military wing, was targeted in an airstrike in the Khan Yunis area of southern Gaza, Israel's Army Radio reported on Saturday.

A senior source noted that there was a high likelihood that Deif was killed in the strike, but that confirmation was, as of yet, forthcoming, Israeli state broadcaster KAN reported.

If confirmed, this would a major blow to Hamas not only strategically, but politically. While Deif is not known to have survived, another target did not:

In a joint IDF and ISA activity, the IDF's Southern Command and the Israeli air force struck an area where two senior Hamas terrorists and additional terrorists were hiding among civilians, the IDF later reported. The location of the strike was an open area surrounded by trees, several buildings, and sheds.

Israeli media reported that Rafa Salama, the commander of Hamas's Khan Yunis Brigade, was also a target of the Israeli strike. The Saudi news outlet, Al Hadath, later reported that Salama had been killed.

The timing and location of this strike was well planned:

It is unclear if Deif was hit in the strike, and his current status is unknown. Still, the IDF told Army Radio that lots of preparation had gone into the strike, that the strike itself was very precise, and that intelligence provided opened a window of opportunity mere hours beforehand.

So far, only terrorists have been killed and no hostages were affected:

Army Radio correspondent Doron Kadosh reported that a security source noted that, as far as was known, no hostages were held at the scene of the strike. An additional two security sources reportedly stated that the attempted elimination of Deif occurred while the Hamas leader was above ground, as opposed to inside a tunnel.

Army Radio added that Deif and Salama had been hiding in a building near tents of displaced persons in the area.

Citing security officials, Army Radio stated that the IDF estimated there would likely be dozens killed as a result of the strike but carried out the attack nonetheless.

Later, however, the Israeli outlet, citing an IDF assessment, reported that dozens of those killed in the strike were active Hamas terrorists who served as security for Deif and Salama.

Netanyahu Speaks About The Strike

The PM will address, but his office said this:

The Prime Minister's Office released a short statement about the attempted elimination, confirming that "the prime minister gave a standing directive at the beginning of the war to eliminate senior Hamas officials. He was updated on all developments during the night and continues to receive regular updates. The prime minister will conduct a situational assessment today with all the security forces and the National Security Council to discuss the next developments and steps."

The PM did say this:

On Saturday evening, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu gave a press conference on the event, saying, "We still do not have confirmation that he was killed, but we have accurate information that tells us that no hostages were in the area of the strike."

"Hamas must not hide among civilians. Why was Deif in the Al-Mawasi camp?" a Fatah spokesperson asked rhetorically following the IDF strike Saturday on the refugee camp where Mohammad Deif was allegedly hiding, Maariv reported.

Hamas weighs in and said the strike was genocide when it clearly was a normal act of war:

Earlier, a senior Hamas official said an Israeli Army Radio report that a strike on Gaza's Khan Younis on Saturday had targeted Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif was "nonsense."

"All the martyrs are civilians, and what happened was a grave escalation of the war of genocide, backed by the American support and world silence," Abu Zuhri told Reuters, adding that the attack showed Israel was not interested in reaching a ceasefire agreement

The terrorists are making claims of innocent people killed, but we need to always remember that they are only engaging in media manipulation:

Some 71 people have been killed, and over 289 others were wounded in the strike, the Hamas-run Gaza health ministry later claimed.

"The Israeli occupation army conducted a big massacre by bombarding the tent camps of the displaced in Khan Younis. The horrifying massacre killed and wounded more than 100 people, including members of the Civil Emergency Service," an earlier statement issued by the Hamas-run Gaza government media office said.

The rest of the Arab world chimed in as well:

Jordan and Egypt's foreign ministries condemned the attack. Jordan claimed that "the tents of the displaced persons in Khan Yunis, an area that Israel had already classified as safe," were attacked, and called on "the international community to act to provide protection for Palestinians, hospitals, and aid organizations operating in Gaza."

Egypt announced that it "strongly condemns the Israeli attack in the Al-Mawasi area, which resulted in the deaths and injuries of dozens of Palestinians. Egypt demands that Israel stop harming civilian lives."

It’s the usual condemnation given by those who still want Israel wiped off the map and, in the case of Egypt is acting as an unbiased mediator as if we should ever trust them after seeing comments like this which in a few days will be confirmed as false. But in the moment and with no reliable reports to support their statements, facts don’t matter. These countries want trust, but not verification in the moments after any IDF strike.

The Man With Nine Lives

The Post article let’s us know why Deif was so high of a target:

Deif was born Mohammad Masri in 1965 in the Khan Yunis Refugee Camp, a short distance from where Israel conducted a strike in an attempt to eliminate the senior Hamas figure. He later became known as Mohammed Deif after joining Hamas during the first Intifada in 1987.

Deif wasn’t always working with Hamas:

Hamas was not the first terror group that Deif became affiliated with, according to a 2014 article by the Washington Post. He was introduced to the Muslim Brotherhood as a teenager and reportedly deepened his connection with Islamist movements while studying at the Islamic University of Gaza.

His last name is not universally agreed on:

Jacob Eriksson, a specialist in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict at the University of York, told France24 that “Deif” translates to “guest” and refers to his constant travel—a tactic used to survive Israeli attacks. However, the Washington Post suggested in 2014 that he took his name from a character he played during a university production.

He was captured, but didn’t stay captive long:

Only two years after joining the terror group, Deif was arrested but spent only 16 months in detention, a Hamas source told Reuters.

He would learn to be good at making bombs and got his nickname because of it:

Deif developed the group's network of terror tunnels and developed his bomb-making expertise. Hamas sources claimed he lost an eye and sustained serious wounds in one leg in previous assassination attempts.

Having escaped numerous assassination attempts, Gazan fans dubbed him "the man with nine lives," a play on the common saying that cats have nine lives.

He played a major role in the attacks on October 7th making him a major target for the IDF:

Deif masterminded much of Hamas’s October 7 attack on southern Israel - allowing terrorists to murder 1200 people and abduct over 250 more.

Regardless of whether he was killed or injured in the current attack, Deif’s legacy is cemented in the terrorist ranks:

Omri Brinner, an Israel and Middle East analyst at the International Team for the Study of Security Verona told France24 that after October 7 “the most successful in the history of Palestinian resistance – [Deif’s] legacy will live forever. He can fail now, Israel can assassinate him now: his legacy will outlast him.”

Deif has been considered an international terrorist by the US since 2015.