Commander Of Hamas' Military Wing Killed In Israeli Strike
ISTANBUL, May 17 (Bernama-Anadolu) -- The commander of the Palestinian group Hamas' military wing, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, was killed in an Israeli strike on Friday evening, according to local sources, Anadolu Ajansi reported.
The attack also killed his wife and daughter, the sources added, noting that their funerals were held in Gaza City.
Speaking to reporters, al-Haddad's sister also confirmed his death.
Meanwhile, Hamas also confirmed the death of al-Haddad on Saturday. The group’s spokesman Hazem Qassem said in a recorded statement that the movement mourns "one of the greatest fighters of the Palestinian people, the commander-in-chief of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Izz al-Din al-Haddad (Abu Suhaib), after a long journey of struggle and confrontation against the occupation".
Al-Haddad "joins the martyred leaders and symbols of the contemporary Palestinian revolution", he added, stressing that "the movement’s path will continue despite this great loss, driven by hope for victory."
In a separate statement, Hamas said that "this crime places the international community and the mediating states of the agreement before their political, legal, and moral responsibilities to act and compel the occupation government (Israel) to fully adhere to the terms of the agreement and to cease its crimes against civilians."
Hamas considered the assassination of Haddad to be "a reflection of attempts to impose political and field realities that Israel failed to achieve by force, through a policy of killing and imposing pressure on the resistance leadership and influencing its political positions".
It added that al-Haddad was "a pillar of the resistance movement in the Gaza Strip".
He had lost his two sons, Suhaib and Mu'min, and his son-in-law, Mahmoud Abu Hasira, during the Israeli war of extermination, the statement noted.
Earlier, the Israeli army claimed it killed Izz al-Din al-Haddad in a strike on Gaza City.
The development came as the Israeli army continues its daily violations of the truce in the Gaza Strip that took effect in Oct 2023.
The ceasefire came after Tel Aviv's two-year genocidal war that killed over 72,000 people and wounded more than 172,000 others.
-- BERNAMA-ANADOLU
