Israeli Military Confirms Death of Hamas Rocket Platoon Commander in Gaza Airstrike

September 9, 2024 TruthUSA

The IDF stated that the Hamas commander was responsible for the rocket barrages fired from the Khan Yunis area towards Israel.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) confirmed on Sept. 8 that they eliminated a Hamas rocket-launching platoon commander in a military airstrike in the southern Gaza Strip last week.

The commander, Raef Omar Salman Abu Shab of the Hamas eastern Khan Yunis battalion, was killed by the IDF air force during an operation in the area, as announced in a statement.

According to the Israeli military, Shab had been leading the rocket barrages launched from the Khan Yunis area towards southern and central Israel since the conflict began last year.

There is no independent confirmation of Shab’s death, and it remains unclear if there were additional casualties from the attack.

Footage released by the IDF depicts strikes on Hamas rocket launch pits and terrorist infrastructure, causing explosions and smoke at the site.

The IDF stated that their air force targeted about 25 Hamas terrorist sites in Gaza the day before, including terrorist cells, military buildings, and terrorist infrastructure.

Separately, on Sept. 7, the IDF announced that two Islamic Jihad battalion commanders were killed in a precise airstrike on a command and control center used by Hamas and Islamic Jihad in Deir al-Balah.

The two commanders were named Abdallah Khatib and Hatem Abu Aljidian. The IDF revealed that Khatib oversaw the battalion’s terrorist activities during the attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, while Aljidian was responsible for conducting attacks against IDF troops throughout the conflict.

The IDF mentioned taking numerous precautions to minimize civilian casualties in the area before executing the strike, including using precision munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence.

Israel initiated its military operation in Gaza following widespread attacks on southern Israel by Hamas terrorists on Oct. 7, 2023. Over 1,100 people were killed, and 250 were held hostage during the assault. The Gaza health department controlled by Hamas reported over 40,000 deaths resulting from Israel’s ground offensive in Gaza.

The Israeli military declared that 101 hostages are still held in Gaza. The IDF has stated that their operation in the region will continue until all hostages are safely returned.

Protests erupted in Israel following the deaths of six hostages. The IDF mentioned that the hostages were brutally murdered by their captors just before their bodies were discovered in an underground tunnel in the Rafah area of Gaza on Aug. 31.

Demonstrators held Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his government accountable for failing to secure a hostage deal. Israeli leadership faced growing pressure to agree to a deal for months, yet extended negotiations with Hamas yielded no results.

Joseph Lord contributed to this report.

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