During the first 10 months of the Gaza war, Israel killed at least eight senior Hamas military and political officials. The targeted assassinations included the daring operation that killed Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran and an airstrike that killed chief military commander Mohammed Deif in a Palestinian camp, both in July 2024. In January, Mossad chief David Barnea vowed that Israel was “committed to settling accounts” with everyone involved—“directly or indirectly,” including “planners and envoys”—in the Hamas invasion of Gaza. “It’ll take time, as it took time after the Munich massacre, but we will put our hands on them wherever they are,” he said, referring to the murder of Israeli athletes at the 1972 Olympics.
The military commanders were part of the Izz ad-Din al Qassam Brigades, the military unit named for a Muslim preacher in the 1930s who opposed the British occupation. Established in 1991, the Qassam Brigades have targeted Israel with rockets, in suicide bombings, and cross-border raids. The following is a rundown of the Israeli assassinations.
Ayman Nofal – A key member of the General Military Council Nofal also coordinated attacks on Israel with other Palestinian factions. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Oct. 17, 2023.
Jamila al Shanti – The first woman elected to the Hamas political bureau, Shanti was the widow of Hamas co-founder Aziz al Rantisi and founder of the Hamas women’s wing. She was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Gaza City on Oct. 19, 2023.
Ibrahim Biari – The commander of the Jabaliya Battalion was responsible for operations in northern Gaza. Israel claimed Biari dispatched the fighters that raided southern Israel on Oct. 7. For two decades, he had also organized rocket attacks on Israel military and civilian targets. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Oct. 31, 2023 that also killed at least 126 civilians.
Khalil Kharaz – The deputy chief of the Qassam Brigades in Lebanon – part of the Hamas military operation abroad – was killed by an Israeli drone strike on a car carrying other Hamas fighters near Tyre on Nov. 21, 2023.
Saleh al Arouri – A co-founder of the Hamas military wing in the West Bank and a deputy political leader, he later became a key intermediary between Hamas and Hezbollah. He and two other senior Hamas officials were killed in an Israeli drone strike on a Hamas office in southern Beirut on Dec. 25, 2023.
Marwan Issa – A deputy commander of the Hamas military wing in Gaza, he reportedly was one of the key planners of the Oct. 7 attacks. He was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp on March 10, 2024.
Mohammed Deif – The top Hamas military commander, he was reportedly the mastermind of the Oct. 7 attack that killed more than 1,100 Israelis and foreigners. He reportedly died in an airstrike on Khan Younis in southern Gaza on July 13, 2024 that also killed at least 90 other Palestinians and injured over 300. Hamas claimed that he survived.
Ismail Haniyeh – The head of the Hamas political office was the chief negotiator – through Qatar and Egypt – with Israel and the United States on terms for a ceasefire and hostage release. He was based in Doha but died while visiting Iran for the inauguration of President Masoud Pezeshkian on July 31, 2024. He was reportedly killed by a bomb smuggled into the Iranian compound months before his visit and detonated by remote control.
