Israel hits Hamas: Netanyahu says Abu Obeida struck; Gaza reels from heavy losses

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu (AP photo)

Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Sunday that the military had targeted Abu Obeida, the masked spokesman of Hamas’s armed wing, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades.”We have struck the Hamas spokesman, the spokesman for this criminal and murderous organisation, Abu Obeida,” news agency AFP reported Netanyahu as saying during a government meeting, according to an official readout.”I hope he is no longer with us, but I notice that there is no one on the Hamas side to clarify this matter,” he added.

For years, Abu Obeida has been the public face of Hamas’s military wing, appearing in video statements clad in fatigues and a red keffiyeh scarf concealing his identity.The announcement comes nearly 23 months into Israel’s war in Gaza, during which much of Hamas’s senior leadership has been killed. Israel has pledged to dismantle the group in retaliation for the October 7, 2023 attacks. Over the past months, it has eliminated key figures including political chief Ismail Haniyeh, military commander Mohammed Deif, and Yahya Sinwar, accused of orchestrating the October 7 assault, alongside a host of other senior operatives. Earlier on Sunday, Hamas itself confirmed the death of Mohammed Sinwar, believed to be its leader in Gaza, months after Israel claimed he had been killed in an air strike.The October 2023 Hamas attack on southern Israel left 1,219 people dead, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli figures. Militants also kidnapped 251 people; 47 remain in captivity, with around 20 thought to still be alive.Israel’s subsequent campaign has exacted a devastating toll on Gaza. At least 63,459 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry. The United Nations has said those figures are reliable.