War Escalates in Gaza as Head of Hamas Govt Reportedly Assassinated

• The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Thursday, October 3, said a strike three months ago killed three senior Hamas leaders in Gaza
• The Israeli military said the strike killed Rawhi Mushtaha, the head of the Hamas government in the Gaza strip, and two other senior Hamas leaders
• Slain Mushtaha had a direct impact on decisions relating to Hamas’ force deployment

Legit.ng journalist, Ridwan Adeola Yusuf, has over 9 years of experience covering global issues.

Gaza, Palestine - Rawhi Mushtaha, the head of the Hamas government in Gaza, has been reportedly killed.

Legit.ng reports that the attack marks a significant escalation in the Israel-Palestine conflict.

The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) confirmed the killing of three senior leaders of Palestinian outfit, Hamas, including Mushtaha.

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Sharing the details of the operation that killed the three Hamas leaders, the IDF said that a strike on an underground compound in northern Gaza killed Mushtaha and two other Hamas commanders, Sameh Siraj and Sameh Oudeh.

There was no immediate comment from Hamas but the Israeli military said following the attack, Hamas did not announce their deaths to prevent the loss of morale and functioning of its operatives.

The death toll in Gaza has risen steadily in the past few months following Israeli attacks.

The ongoing Gaza war was sparked by Hamas’ October 7, 2023, attack, which resulted in the deaths of 1,205 people in Israel, mostly civilians, according to an AFP tally based on Israeli official figures that include hostages killed in captivity.

Israel’s retaliatory military offensive has killed at least 41,788 people in Gaza, majority of them civilians, according to figures provided by the territory’s health ministry.

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Who is Rawhi Mustaha?

Mushtaha was born in 1959 in the Shuja'iyya neighbourhood of Gaza. He was arrested in 1988, just a few months after his marriage, and spent nearly 25 years in prison following an explosion that resulted in the amputation of his fingers.

Mushtaha was involved in founding the Internal Security Force (ISF) –also known as al-Majd– which is the intelligence organization of Hamas, operating under the ministry of interior.

Iran launches missiles towards Israel

Meanwhile, Israel experienced an attack as Iran launched missiles.

Nearly 200 missiles were launched towards Israel on Tuesday evening, October 1.

Israeli military spokesperson, Daniel Hagari, said there are no reports of casualties from the attack.

Proofread by Kola Muhammed, journalist and copyeditor at Legit.ng

Source: Legit.ng