Israeli forces kill Hamas commander Izz al-Din al-Beik in Gaza attack

An Israeli air attack has killed Izz al-Din al-Beik, the head of Hamas’s armed wing in the northern Gaza ⁠Strip, Palestinian and Israeli officials said.

Al-Beik was killed in ⁠an Israeli strike on an apartment building in Gaza City’s ‌Nassr neighbourhood early on Tuesday. Hamas issued a statement confirming the killing.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz also posted a joint statement on X, saying the military had killed al-Beik.

Al-Shifa Hospital said another person later died from wounds sustained in the attack.

Al-Beik had assumed command of the Qassam Brigades in northern Gaza during Israel’s genocidal war, succeeding senior commander Ahmed al-Ghandour.

The attack comes as Israel has escalated strikes on Hamas in Gaza in recent weeks.

The Israeli military says it has killed at least 20 members of Hamas this month, including some senior commanders and some people who it claimed took part in the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on October 7, 2023 or held Israeli captives.

Hamas has accused Israel of undermining the United States-backed “ceasefire” deal the two sides agreed last October.

The agreement calls ⁠for the eventual reconstruction of the territory. But little progress has been made as negotiators have failed ⁠to agree on terms for Hamas to disarm and ⁠Israel to withdraw its troops.

Israeli attacks on Gaza have continued, with more than 1,400 Palestinians killed in Gaza since the “ceasefire” took effect, according to the territory’s Ministry of Health, with the ‌Israeli military saying four of its soldiers were also killed.

Palestinian authorities say more than 74,000 people have been killed in Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza since October 2023.