Israel Strikes Gaza, Kills Hamas Military Chief Mohammed Odeh, Netanyahu Says

Israel carried out a strike in the Gaza Strip targeting new Hamas military chief Mohammed Odeh, 11 days after killing his predecessor, in the Rimal neighborhood of western Gaza City.

“- Odeh was appointed as chief of the Ezzedine Al-Qassam Brigades after his predecessor Ezzedine Al-Haddad was killed in a strike in Gaza earlier in May JERUSALEM: Israel said it targeted the new chief of Hamas’ armed wing in a strike in Gaza on Tuesday, just days after his predecessor was killed in a similar attack in the Palestinian territory”

Arab News

Gaza’s civil defense agency, which operates as a rescue service under Hamas, reported at least three people were killed and 20 wounded in the strike, and there was no immediate comment from Hamas or official confirmation from Israel that Odeh was dead.

BBC

A joint statement from Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz said Odeh was head of Hamas intelligence during the October 7, 2023, attacks and last week was appointed to succeed Izz al-Din al-Haddad as the terror group’s leader in the Gaza Strip and chief of its military wing.

Hebrew media outlets cited initial assessments indicating the strike was successful, with an Israeli source telling the Kan public broadcaster that Odeh was killed, while Al Jazeera reported that the strike destroyed the upper floor of an apartment building in Rimal and left two dead and over 20 wounded, according to local rescue services.

Netanyahu and Katz said in their joint statement, “Odeh was responsible for the murder, abduction and injury of many Israeli civilians and IDF soldiers,” and they added, “We will continue to pursue everyone who took part in the October 7 massacre.”

The Media Line reported that an Israeli source confirmed to the Kan public broadcaster that Odeh was killed in the operation, while noting there was no immediate official Israeli confirmation Tuesday evening and Hamas had not commented publicly on the reports.

Si En En al-Arabiya

Roya News said Gaza’s civil defense agency reported three people, including a woman, were killed and at least 20 others wounded in the Rimal neighborhood, and it quoted a security source in Gaza saying there was “no information available regarding the target.”

News18 described the strike as the second elimination of Hamas’ top armed chief in less than two weeks, and it said Hamas had yet to officially issue a statement on his targeting.

The Times of Israel said Israel has kept up its campaign against the perpetrators of October 7 despite a ceasefire that has been in place in Gaza since October, and it cited a Wall Street Journal report that Israel created a list of all Palestinians who took part in the attack and is working to kill or arrest each one.

“The Palestinian–Israeli conflict”

Si En En al-Arabiya

The Times of Israel also said the list includes all Gazans identified as having crossed the border on October 7, as well as all Hamas leaders involved in orchestrating the massacre, during which some 1,200 people were killed and 251 taken hostage, mostly civilians.

In parallel, News18 reported that Israel’s retaliatory military campaign in Gaza has since killed at least 72,803 people, according to Gaza’s health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority, and it said Israel’s retaliatory response has killed at least 72,803 people in Gaza, according to the territory’s health ministry.

WION reported that the United Nations has considered the figures reliable, and it framed the strike as part of Israel’s ongoing operations targeting Hamas political leaders and military commanders in Gaza and across the region.