Gaza medics reported that Israeli airstrikes on Friday killed at least seven Palestinians, including a child, as Israel targeted the head of Hamas's armed wing. However, neither Israel nor the militants confirmed whether the target, Izz Al-Din Al-Haddad, was killed or wounded. Hamas did not immediately respond to requests for comment on Haddad's fate. He became the militant group's military chief in Gaza after Israel killed commander Mohammad Sinwar in May 2025.
Netanyahu's Statement
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a joint statement, calling Haddad an architect of the October 7, 2023 attacks that triggered Israel's two-year assault on Gaza. He is the most senior Hamas official targeted since a US-backed ceasefire deal in October, which aimed to halt fighting. The attack comes amid deadlocked talks on advancing President Donald Trump's post-war plan for Gaza.
Details of the Airstrikes
Medics said at least seven people, including three women and a child, were killed and at least 50 injured in strikes on an apartment and a vehicle. It was unclear if Haddad was among the dead. The first strike hit an apartment in Gaza City's Rimal district, killing at least four. A second strike targeted a vehicle nearby, killing three. Reuters footage showed flames engulfing an apartment in a bombed-out building, with Palestinians pulling a body from the wreckage.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza's Civil Defense, said hundreds of people were living in the targeted building. He stated, 'The missile was fired without any pre-warning or notification. We are talking about a number of dead and a big number of wounded, among them families.'
Escalation Since Ceasefire
Israel has escalated attacks in Gaza over the past five weeks, after halting joint bombing with the US in Iran. The October ceasefire halted major fighting after two years of war, but steps toward a permanent settlement have faltered. Israeli forces occupy over half of Gaza, demolishing buildings and ordering residents out. More than 2 million people live in a narrow coastal strip, mainly in damaged structures or tents, under de facto Hamas control. Since the ceasefire, about 850 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to figures that do not distinguish combatants from civilians. Four Israeli soldiers were killed by militants in the same period. Hamas does not disclose its fighter casualties.
