Israeli Military Says Killed Three Hamas Commanders In Gaza Strip

(MENAFN- IANS) Jerusalem, Nov 22 (IANS) The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Israeli Security Agency (ISA) killed five Hamas fighters in an airstrike, including three commanders, the IDF said in a statement on Friday.

The IDF said that the attack was carried out by Israeli Air Force aircraft overnight between Wednesday and Thursday, with intelligence guidance from the ISA and support from artillery and armor units, in the northern Gaza Strip city of Beit Lahia, Xinhua news agency reported.

It identified the three commanders as Jihad Mahmoud Yehia Kahlout, a company commander in the elite Nukhba force, Muhammad Riyad Ali Okel, and Anas Jalal Muhammad Abu Shakian.

They were accused of involvement in killings and kidnappings near the Israeli village of Mefalsim during a Hamas attack against Israel on October 7 of last year and of participating in recent fighting in the northern Gaza Strip against IDF forces.

In another statement on Friday, the IDF said it had killed Khalid Abu Daqqa, commander of the Islamic Jihad's rocket unit in the city of Deir al-Balah in the central Gaza Strip, on Wednesday.

"Abu Daqqa was responsible for commanding and conducting numerous attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers," the statement reads.

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