Israeli airstrikes killed at least seven Palestinians in Gaza on Friday (15 May), including a child, as Israel said it had launched an operation targeting Hamas military commander Izz al-Din al-Haddad.
Hamas confirmed in a statement that Haddad, who was born in 1970, had been killed alongside his wife and daughter. The group described him as a key figure in overseeing combat operations and accused Israel of attempting to achieve through targeted killings what it had failed to accomplish militarily.
A joint funeral for Haddad, his wife and their 19-year-old daughter was held on Saturday (16 May) at Al Aqsa Martyrs Mosque in central Gaza.
The strikes hit Gaza City’s Rimal district, where medics said an apartment building and a nearby vehicle were targeted within minutes of each other. According to emergency workers, at least three women were among the dead, while around 50 people were wounded.
Haddad is regarded as Hamas’ most senior military figure in Gaza following the killing of commander Mohammad Sinwar by Israeli forces in May 2025.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz described him as one of the key organisers of the 7 October 2023 attacks on Israel, which triggered the war in Gaza.
In a joint statement, Netanyahu and Katz accused Haddad of being “responsible for the murder, abduction, and harm inflicted on thousands of Israeli civilians and soldiers”. They stopped short, however, of saying whether the operation had succeeded in killing him.
The attack marks the highest-profile attempt by Israel to eliminate a senior Hamas figure since the ceasefire arrangement brokered with U.S. backing last October. That agreement largely halted the fighting after two years of war, though negotiations over a lasting settlement have since stalled.
Talks remain deadlocked over competing demands surrounding the future governance of Gaza, the withdrawal of Israeli troops, and the disarmament of Hamas. The impasse has unfolded alongside renewed military operations and worsening humanitarian conditions across the territory.
Footage filmed by Reuters at the scene showed flames tearing through an upper floor of a heavily damaged residential block. Residents and rescue workers were seen pulling casualties from the rubble, with at least one body wrapped in a white plastic sheet.
Mahmoud Basal, spokesperson for Gaza’s Civil Defence agency, said the building had been sheltering hundreds of displaced people when it was hit.
“The missile was fired without any pre-warning or notification,” Basal said. “We are talking about a number of dead. We are talking about a big number of wounded, among them families.”
Medical officials said the first strike hit an apartment in Rimal, killing four people and injuring several others. A second strike shortly afterwards targeted a vehicle on a nearby street, leaving three more dead.
Israel has intensified its operations in Gaza over the past five weeks after ending a period in which its military focus had shifted towards Iran during a joint bombing campaign with the United States. Israeli officials believe Hamas fighters have been regrouping inside the enclave amid the relative lull in large-scale combat.
Despite the ceasefire reached last October, Israeli forces still control more than half of Gaza, according to Palestinian officials and aid agencies.
Large areas of the territory have been reduced to rubble, with much of the population displaced into overcrowded coastal zones where many are living in tents or damaged buildings.
More than two million Palestinians remain confined to a narrow strip along the Mediterranean coast, where Hamas continues to exercise de facto authority.
According to Palestinian figures, around 850 people have been killed in Israeli strikes since the October ceasefire came into effect, though the data does not distinguish between civilians and combatants.
Israeli authorities say four of their soldiers have been killed by Hamas fighters during the same period. Hamas has not released casualty figures for its own members.
Saudi Arabia has temporarily shut down its 1,200-kilometre East-West oil pipeline after it was hit by a drone attack, with Riyadh and Baghdad sayin...
Russia's Defence Ministry said its forces struck two cargo vessels overnight in the Ukrainian Black Sea port o...
Saudi Arabia is opening up to more international travellers as tourism expands beyond religious travel. In Riyadh, historic landmarks stand alongsi...
Overnight Iranian strikes on an air base in Jordan damaged multiple U.S. aircraft and left one without a wing, American media reported. Meanwhile, explosions were heard across parts of southern Iran according to local media reports.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining a host of foreign dignitaries.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian oil refinery in Siberia and a seaport in Dagestan in the past 24 hours, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said. He will meet Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney on Thursday to discuss air defences for Ukraine over winter.
Mexico and the U.S. are racing to secure a trade deal before the U.S. midterm elections in less than eight weeks, according to six sources familiar with the talks, with failed negotiations between Washington and Canada adding urgency.
A Russian strike on a gas station in Kyiv has killed two people, the city's Mayor Vitali Klitschko said in a statement on Telegram. In Russia, online marketplace Ozon has suspended operations in Saratov, southwestern Russia, following a drone strike on a warehouse in the region.
Uzbekistan plans to introduce a new Heritage Impact Assessment system to shield historic cities and cultural heritage sites from the potential impact of construction and infrastructure development. Digital tools will also be used to manage tourist numbers and limit visitors where necessary.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to deepening its partnership with the Gates Foundation, with talks spanning polio eradication, health, financial inclusion and digital development.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian arrived in New Delhi on Friday to attend the weekend BRICS summit, amid the ongoing U.S.-Iran conflict, joining a host of foreign dignitaries.
Georgia’s top security official has held face-to-face talks with his Azerbaijani counterpart in China, with both sides pledging to deepen intelligence cooperation amid growing global security challenges.
More than 46,000 people have been displaced in Yemen since fighting escalated last week, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Friday, warning that the number is rising “by the hour”.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment