Hamas Terrorist Who Murdered Israeli Released in Gilad Shalit Deal Eliminated in Gaza

A senior Hamas operative, Farhat Hemed, who was part of the cell responsible for the murder of Shuli Har-Melech and five other Israelis during the Second Intifada, was killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Sheikh Ajlin neighborhood of Gaza City. Hemed was a member of the Silwad cell that murdered Shuli Har-Melech, Esther Gali, Tzvi Goldstein, Sergeant Elad Pollak, Sergeant Roi Yaakov Solomon, and First Sergeant Erez Idan. He had been serving three life sentences in Israeli prison before being released in the 2011 Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange deal and subsequently deported to Gaza.

Upon his release, Hemed returned to terrorist activities, becoming a central figure in Hamas's West Bank headquarters, which directed attacks in Judea and Samaria. He survived multiple assassination attempts, including during Operation Protective Edge and Operation Guardian of the Walls, evading capture for three years of conflict.

Knesset Member Limor Son Har-Melech, the widow of Shuli Har-Melech, commented on the elimination of her husband's killer, stating, "Another circle closed!" She added, "The pain does not pass and the longing does not cease, but today justice was done. Let every terrorist who murdered Jews know: even if he is released, even if he escapes, and even if many years pass, the long arm of the people of Israel will reach him." She thanked the IDF soldiers and security forces for closing "an important and painful circle."

Hemed was critically wounded by an Air Force missile and later died in a hospital. His elimination marks a significant closure for the families of his victims and a blow to Hamas's operational capabilities.