Israel Kills New Hamas Military Wing Commander in Gaza City Strike

The BBC reported Tuesday that Israeli forces killed Mohammed Odeh, the newly appointed head of Hamas’s military wing, in a targeted strike on Gaza City. The attack hit a residential building in one of the city’s busiest commercial districts, with local medics reporting at least three deaths and dozens of injuries.

Strike Hits Busy Market District Ahead of Eid

The IDF and Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security service issued a joint statement confirming the operation. They said the building was identified as a hideout for Odeh after months of intelligence surveillance tracking his movements and those of his close associates. Eyewitnesses described five missiles striking the structure from multiple directions almost simultaneously. The assault tore through the upper floors of the al-Kayali building as shoppers crowded nearby streets ahead of the Eid al-Adha holiday. Emergency crews faced significant difficulty reaching upper floors due to structural damage and congestion at the scene.

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A Second Commander Lost in Weeks

Odeh’s killing follows a near-identical Israeli operation earlier in May that eliminated his predecessor, Izz ad-Din al-Haddad. That strike also targeted a residential building and resulted in multiple civilian casualties, according to witnesses. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described Odeh as one of the planners of the October 7, 2023 attack, in which approximately 1,200 people were killed inside Israel and 251 were taken hostage. Netanyahu vowed continued pursuit of all participants in that assault.

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Ceasefire Holds in Name Only

Israel and Hamas have technically been operating under a ceasefire since October, though the arrangement has deteriorated sharply. Hamas has accused Israel of repeatedly breaching its terms by continuing to strike civilian areas. Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry says more than 900 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the ceasefire began. Israeli officials maintain the right to target Hamas operatives and accuse Hamas of violating the agreement through failure to disarm. The latter phases of a US-brokered peace framework have stalled entirely. Disarmament talks remain deadlocked, and Hamas has since reconstituted its police force and appears to be reasserting administrative control. Separately, Israeli forces carried out strikes in Lebanon on Tuesday, killing 31 people in operations directed at Hezbollah infrastructure. Netanyahu has pledged an escalation of military pressure on the group there as well. The overall civilian toll across Gaza since the post-October 7 campaign began now exceeds 72,800, per the territory’s health ministry, a figure the United Nations regards as credible.

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