The Israeli military announced that it had killed one of Hamas’s senior-most commanders in Gaza in a targeted strike on December 13, in what would be the most high-profile killing of a Hamas figure since a US-brokered truce began on October 10. Raed Saad, a senior commander in the Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas, was targeted for his central role in planning the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023.
The drone strike on Saad’s car took place near the Nabulsi junction in western Gaza City. The location of the attack was on the Palestinian-controlled side of the Yellow Line, a boundary dividing parts of the Gaza Strip that has been in place since the ceasefire came into effect. In addition to Saad, a local Hamas official said his aide and a lower-ranking Hamas figure identified as Abu Imad al-Laban were also among the dead. Around 25 people were reported to have been wounded in the explosion, including passers-by who were in the area at the time.
Israel described the operation as a targeted elimination authorised by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz. Officials said the immediate trigger for the strike was an incident earlier that day in southern Gaza, when an explosive device detonated and wounded two Israeli reserve soldiers who were carrying out an operation to clear an area. Israeli officials argued that Saad was actively involved in rebuilding Hamas’s military capabilities, which they said constituted a violation of the ceasefire. The Israel Defence Forces and the Shin Bet security agency stated that Saad was responsible for the deaths of many Israeli soldiers through the use of explosive devices.
Hamas rejected Israel’s justification and said the strike was a clear breach of the truce. The group asserted its right to respond to what it described as aggression. The killing highlighted the fragility of the ceasefire, which had been brokered by the United States and other mediators and was intended to halt large-scale hostilities while diplomatic efforts continued.
Saad had long been regarded by Israel as a high-value target. Israeli intelligence agencies had attempted to kill him for more than two decades. Within Hamas, he was considered a key figure. He served as the head of the group’s military manufacturing unit and was responsible for weapons production. Hamas sources described him as the second-in-command of the Qassam Brigades, ranking just below Izz al-Din al-Haddad.
Saad previously commanded the Gaza City battalion, one of Hamas’s largest and best-equipped units. He was also said to be a member of a newly formed five-person military leadership council that was established after the October ceasefire. Israel described him as one of the architects of the October 2023 attacks, saying he led several brigades during the assault. He had managed to evade capture or death on multiple occasions, including during a surprise Israeli raid on the Shifa medical complex in Gaza City in March 2024, when he reportedly fled only moments before Israeli forces arrived.
Hamas’s interior ministry said on Sunday that another one of its officers, Ahmed Zamzam, had been shot dead by unidentified armed individuals in the Maghazi refugee camp in central Gaza. The ministry said one suspect had been apprehended. Later, citing an initial investigation, it claimed that Zamzam had been killed by an Israeli-backed group acting under Israel’s orders. The ministry said the assassination was carried out by agents of the occupation under direct instructions from Israeli intelligence and added that investigations were continuing and that the remaining perpetrators were being pursued.
Hamas leader Khalil al-Hayya formally confirmed Saad’s death in a speech on Sunday, marking the group’s 38th anniversary. He said that Hamas’s weapons were a right guaranteed under international law and rejected the International Stabilisation Force proposed under Trump’s Gaza peace plan, which was adopted by a UN Security Council resolution in November. Hayya said Hamas rejected all forms of external control over the Palestinian people and that the group would not give up its arms without the establishment of a Palestinian state.
