Defense Minister Israel Katz issued a statement on Saturday night following the IDF and Shin Bet’s announcement of a targeted operation that killed senior Hamas members Mohammed Sinwar, Mohammad Shabaneh, and Mahdi Quara.
“It’s now official: mass murderer Mohammad Sinwar, along with Rafah Battalion commander Mohammad Shabaneh and their group, have been eliminated and sent to join his brother at the gates of hell,” Katz said, praising the operation. “Congratulations to the IDF and the Shin Bet for a flawless operation.”
Katz issued a direct warning to remaining Hamas leaders: “Israel’s long arm will reach everyone involved in the October 7th massacre, wherever they are, near or far, until they are all dead. Az A-Din Al-Haddad in Gaza and Khalil Al-Hayya abroad, you are next.”
Az A-Din Al-Haddad, also known as Abu Suhaib, leads the Gaza City Brigade, part of Hamas’s military wing. Considered a key planner of the October 7th massacre, he has reportedly survived multiple assassination attempts. His eldest son was killed earlier in the war.
Khalil Al-Hayya, known as Abu Osama, heads Hamas’s political bureau in Gaza and is a member of its senior leadership council. He lost his son, daughter-in-law, and grandson in an airstrike during Operation Protective Edge. Al-Hayya currently resides in Qatar.