In a joint Israel Defense Forces and Shin Bet operation over the weekend, a targeted strike in southern Gaza killed Zaki Yusuf Mahmoud Abu Mustafa, described as a Nukhba commander in the Khan Younis Brigade of Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The military said Abu Mustafa took part in the October 7 massacre at Kibbutz Nir Oz and in the abduction of Yagil Yaakov, a child he was photographed kidnapping inside Israel.
According to the IDF, Abu Mustafa had recently been working to rebuild the armed group’s capabilities in Gaza while violating the ceasefire agreement. The army said he had also advanced multiple terror plots against Israeli forces and tried to carry out militant training inside Nasser Hospital so fighters would not be struck while operating there.
The IDF said Abu Mustafa posed an immediate threat to troops operating in the area and was killed in a precise strike. A separate strike also killed Muhammad Osama Abd al-Aziz Saba al-Aish, a Nukhba operative from Hamas, who had tried to promote training and instruction for the group’s fighters and recruit additional militants.
