IDF Strikes Hamas Commander; Palestinian Reports Say Rafah Leader Killed

The IDF announced Sunday night that it had targeted a senior official in Hamas's military wing in the Gaza Strip. One person was killed and two were wounded in the strike in the Al-Mawasi area, west of Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip, according to the Nasser Medical Center. Al Jazeera reported the strike was carried out by drones. Unofficial reports identified the deceased as Samir Abu Younes, commander of Hamas's military wing in the Rafah area. In September, the IDF and Shin Bet assassinated Abu Younes's predecessor, Na'al Abu Abed, who also served as head of operations in Hamas. At the time, the organizations stated that Abu Abed had worked to rebuild the brigade, which had been damaged during the war, and that before being appointed commander of Rafah, he had served as deputy commander of the Rafah Brigade and commander of the Tal Sultan and Yibna battalions. Minister of Defense Israel Katz commented on the strike, writing on his X account that "the IDF continues to eliminate Hamas leaders in Gaza, and another one joins his predecessors in the depths of hell."

Two days prior, Palestinian media reported that three people were killed and about ten others injured, some seriously, in an Israeli strike east of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip. Reports indicated the IDF fired a shell at an apartment in the Al-Kristal towers, where a mourning tent was located, and subsequently fired at tents in the area. Rescue forces and ambulances had difficulty reaching the scene, and the wounded, including children and women, were evacuated in civilian vehicles. Footage from the scene showed firing at residents attempting to flee. Separately, the Gaza Ministry of Health reported the death of a nine-month-old infant from hypothermia. This is the first reported death in the Strip due to hypothermia this winter, compared to ten such deaths last winter. The ministry stated that the baby, Kinan Ahmed Ararqiq, was brought to Nasser Medical Center in Khan Younis lifeless yesterday, after being transferred from the Kuwaiti Hospital in Rafah.