The Israel Defense Forces said Saturday that it had killed Hakham Muhammad Issa Al-Issa, one of the founders of Hamas’s military wing, in Gaza City.
Israel has killed a number of other high-ranking members of Hamas in the past year, including leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar. The IDF claimed that Al-Issa was one of the last remaining senior members of Hamas in Gaza.
The IDF also said in its statement that Al-Issa had played a “significant” role in planning and carrying out the Oct. 7, 2023, attacks in Israel, during which Hamas fighters killed more than 1,200 people and took more than 250 people hostage.
The military also said that Al-Issa had worked to rebuild Hamas systems that were damaged during the war.
President Trump said Friday that he thinks a ceasefire in Gaza could come “within the next week.” Israel’s war in the territory has killed more than 55,000 people as food, water and medical supplies have grown scarce. Media reports have also circulated in recent weeks of Israeli troops firing on Palestinians in Gaza waiting at humanitarian aid sites.
Tens of thousands of people packed Hostages Square in Tel Aviv on Saturday to call for a ceasefire and the return of the remaining hostages, some people holding signs appealing for Trump to end the war. Others condemned Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Several smaller demonstrations in other cities also demanded an end of the war and the return of the hostages.
