The Israeli army on Wednesday claimed to have killed a senior commander within the armed wing of the Palestinian group in a strike on Gaza City a few days ago.
In a military statement, cited by the Times of Israel news portal, the Israeli army and the internal security service (Shin Bet) killed Mahmoud Abu Hisirah, identifying him as a close aide to Izz ad-Din Haddad, commander of the Al-Qassam's Gaza Brigade.
Haddad survived several Israeli assassination attempts during the ongoing war and before, according to Israeli media.
The statement also claimed that Abu Hisirah took part in a Hamas attack on the Israeli army's Nahal Oz post, near Gaza, in 2014, during which five soldiers were killed.
Hamas is yet to comment on the Israeli claim.
The Israeli army renewed a deadly assault on Gaza on March 18, shattering a ceasefire and prisoner exchange agreement that took hold in January.
At least 51,000 Palestinians, most of them women and children, have been killed in Gaza in a brutal Israeli onslaught since October 2023.
The International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants last November for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant for war crimes and crimes against humanity in Gaza.
Israel also faces a genocide case at the International Court of Justice for its war on the enclave.
