The Israeli army has carried out several targeted strikes against Hamas terrorists in the Gaza Strip within a short period of time. According to the IDF, the targets had been planning attacks against Israeli soldiers and civilians. Among those killed is a Hamas commander who Israeli security sources identified as a participant in the Oct. 7 massacres.
On Wednesday, the Israeli Air Force struck the leader of a Hamas cell in the Beit Lahia area in the northern Gaza Strip. The IDF said the terrorist was planning attacks against Israeli troops operating in the area. He was struck from the air to eliminate the threat to the soldiers.
The army initially did not release the name of the Hamas commander. According to Palestinian sources, one person was killed and several others were wounded in the strike.
It was the first Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip in more than a week. Previously, the IDF had already acted against Hamas terrorists who posed an immediate threat to Israeli soldiers.
Also on Wednesday, soldiers from the Paratroopers Brigade in the southern Gaza Strip identified a terrorist who had crossed the so-called “Yellow Line” and was approaching the troops. As he posed an immediate threat, the soldiers opened fire.
Further Hamas commanders struck
On Thursday, the IDF continued its targeted strikes. A company commander of Hamas’s military wing was struck from the air in the Khan Yunis area in the southern Gaza Strip.
The Hamas commander had been planning attacks against Israeli troops operating in the Gaza Strip. The airstrike was carried out to eliminate the threat to the soldiers. The IDF initially released no further details about the man’s identity.
A few hours later, the IDF and Shin Bet reported another targeted strike. In Gaza City, Jamal Mahmoud Abu Kamil, a Hamas commander, was killed in an airstrike.
According to statements from Israeli security forces, Abu Kamil was among the terrorists who invaded Israeli territory during the massacre of October 7, 2023. During the war and in recent times, he had been planning attacks against IDF soldiers and Israeli civilians. He was killed from the air to eliminate the threat he posed.
The latest strikes come during a phase of significantly reduced Israeli military activity in the Gaza Strip. At the same time, the IDF continues to carry out targeted strikes when, in its assessment, there is an immediate threat to Israeli soldiers or civilians.
The army rejected reports that the rules of engagement in the Gaza Strip had fundamentally changed. There is “no change to the rules of engagement,” the IDF stated. Every Israeli soldier remains obligated to neutralize an immediate threat. There has also been no change to the deployment of forces or the monitoring of the “Yellow Line.”
The statement came in response to reports in Israeli media suggesting that the army had recently restricted its targeted strikes in the Gaza Strip. According to Israeli security sources, strikes that do not serve to counter an immediate threat must now first be approved by IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir. The army emphasizes, however, that it will continue to act against immediate dangers to its troops.
The development is also connected to the disagreements over the further implementation of the American Gaza plan. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu made clear on Sunday that Israel would not carry out any further withdrawal from the Gaza Strip before Hamas had actually been disarmed.
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