A Palestinian Islamic Jihad commander who helped hold and abuse Israeli hostages in Gaza was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza, the IDF and Shin Bet announced Tuesday.
The slain operative, Talal Jaber Mohammad Abd al-Aal, commanded a cell that infiltrated Israel during the Hamas-led massacre of Oct. 7, 2023, and later participated in holding Israeli hostages in the southern Gaza Strip, according to the Israeli security agencies.
The IDF said Abd al-Aal was targeted on Sunday after serving in multiple roles within Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The military added that precautions were taken before the strike to reduce civilian casualties, including aerial surveillance and the use of precision munitions.
🔴ELIMINATED: Talal Jaber Mohammad Abd al-Aal, an Islamic Jihad terrorist who commanded a terrorist cell that infiltrated Israel during the October 7 Massacre and took part in holding hostages throughout the war. pic.twitter.com/cwgdMKp0le
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 30, 2026
For former hostage Rom Braslavski, the announcement was not abstract. It was personal.
Braslavski said Abd al-Aal was the man he knew in captivity as “Abu Youssef,” the commander of the cell that held him for more than a year and subjected him to severe abuse.
“This is the most emotional day of my life,” Braslavski wrote after receiving news of the strike. He said the phone call informing him of Abd al-Aal’s death left him in tears and overwhelmed.
Rom posted a selfie video of him receiving that emotional calls from the IDF, during which he even spoke with an officer in the field in Gaza who assured Rom they had not stopped hunting his captors from the very first day of the war.
Rom Braslavski, who was held captive by Palestinian Islamic Jihad for 738 days after being kidnapped from the Nova festival in Israel, on October 7, 2023, received a phone call from Israeli security officials informing him that “Abu Yousef,” Talal Abd al-Aal, the terrorist who… pic.twitter.com/dVfqAG9q4Z
— StandWithUs (@StandWithUs) June 30, 2026
Publishing a photo of Abd al-Aal, Braslavski described him as the man who had jumped on his neck while he was malnourished, spat into his mouth while he was tied up and beaten, and ordered others to bind and abuse him.
“This is the commander who gave the order: ‘Tie Abu Salem up and abuse him,’” Braslavski wrote, using the name his captors gave him. He said Abd al-Aal abused him personally and nearly killed him several times.
Braslavski also recalled that Abd al-Aal once told him to deliver a message to Israel’s Shin Bet while making a crude hand gesture, declaring that he was not afraid.
“The message was delivered,” Braslavski wrote. “Enjoy hell.”
Braslavski has previously spoken publicly about the torture, fear, and humiliation he endured in Gaza. He said he was held for long periods with his hands and feet tied, sometimes naked, blindfolded and forced to stand for hours. He described being beaten on the soles of his feet and subjected to deliberate degradation meant to strip him of his dignity.
“They wanted to make me feel like I was an animal,” he said in an interview with Israel’s Ynet news portal.
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