IDF Eliminates Three Hamas Militants Including October 7 Attacker in Gaza

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Shin Bet announced on Thursday the killing of Abdullah Jaha, a Hamas naval platoon militant who infiltrated Israel during the October 7 massacre. Jaha had been actively involved in planning maritime terrorist attacks against Israeli forces and civilians throughout the ongoing conflict. Alongside him, two other Hamas military wing operatives were killed: Muhammad Al-Hawari, a squad leader in the Zaytoun Battalion, and Tzabhi Sakalla, a reconnaissance operative in the same battalion. According to the IDF, these militants were eliminated to neutralize immediate threats to Israeli forces and civilians.

The Southern Command forces remain deployed in the area under existing agreements and will continue operations to remove any imminent dangers. The IDF also revealed that several Gaza-based football players, previously portrayed internationally as mere athletes, were in fact militants affiliated with Hamas and Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ). This disclosure counters recent false claims that the IDF deliberately targeted innocent Palestinian footballers during the war.

Among those killed were Muhammad Barakat, a PIJ militant who infiltrated Israel on October 7; Mahmoud Kamal Muhammad Ali Al-Rifi, a Hamas aerial platoon commander; and Muhammad Mansour, a deputy commander in Hamas’s Nuzirat Battalion who also entered Israel on October 7. Other footballers, coaches, and even a FIFA international referee were identified as active militants within Hamas and PIJ military structures. The IDF condemned campaigns falsely portraying these militants as civilians or professionals to delegitimize Israeli military actions, emphasizing that these individuals were targeted due to their terrorist activities, not their civilian roles.

This announcement highlights the complex interplay between militant activity and civilian cover in Gaza amid the ongoing conflict, underscoring Israel’s efforts to counter threats while addressing misinformation propagated during the war.