The Israeli military announced on Saturday that it had killed a senior Hamas commander, Hakham Muhammad Issa Al-Issa, in an airstrike carried out in the Sabra neighborhood of Gaza City. The strike, executed Friday evening in coordination with Israel’s Shin Bet domestic security agency, targeted what the IDF described as a major figure in Hamas’ military operations.

Al-Issa was identified as a founding member of Hamas’ military wing and a key architect behind the deadly October 7, 2023 attack on southern Israel. That assault killed over 1,200 Israelis and saw more than 200 people taken hostage and transported into Gaza.

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Al-Issa served as the head of Hamas’ combat support headquarters, overseeing aerial and naval attacks and playing a central role in rebuilding Hamas’ military infrastructure amid ongoing hostilities.

“His elimination is a significant operational success,” the IDF said, noting that Al-Issa had also held leadership roles within Hamas’ training headquarters and general security council. The statement described him as one of the last remaining senior Hamas figures still operating inside Gaza.

Hamas has yet to respond publicly to Israel’s claim.

The announcement comes amid renewed Israeli military operations in Gaza, which resumed on March 18 following a two-month ceasefire. On Monday, Israeli airstrikes targeted the village of Al-Masdar in central Gaza and areas east of Jabalia in the north, according to WAFA, the Palestinian official news agency.

The continued conflict has raised international concerns over escalating civilian casualties and prolonged instability in the region.