IDF: Senior Hamas commander Rafa Salama killed in Israeli airstrike

The Israeli military said senior Hamas commander Rafa Salama was killed in an airstrike in Gaza on Saturday. Hamas has not confirmed the report.

The Hamas-run health ministry in the Gaza Strip said the Israeli attack hit a camp for displaced people in a designated humanitarian zone in Khan Younis, killing at least 90 Palestinians and wounding 289 others.

Israel has said the attack targeted senior Hamas leaders, but Hamas says this claim is “false” and only serves to “justify” the attack.

Eyewitnesses reported seeing “at least five large fighter jets bombing the center of Al Mawasi, west of Khan Younis.”

Most of the injured were taken to the nearby Nasser Hospital.

However, according to officials and doctors, the facility is “no longer functional” because the doctors are “overwhelmed by the large number of victims.”

Speaking to Newshour on the BBC World Service, Dr Mohammed Abu Rayya, who is dealing with the aftermath of the attack at a hospital, said the majority of those injured had suffered numerous shrapnel wounds.

He said it was like “hell,” adding that many of the victims were civilians, mostly women and children.

The Israeli army said Salama, a commander of the Khan Younis Brigade, was one of the “masterminds” of the October 7 attack and a close confidant of Mohammed Deif, the commander of Hamas’ military wing.

A military spokesman said Salama’s death “significantly affects Hamas’ military capabilities.”

It is not known whether Deif was killed. The Israeli army said he was also a target of the attack.

Deif has been one of Israel’s most wanted men for decades and is held responsible by the Israeli authorities for the killing of numerous civilians and soldiers.

A joint statement by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and Israel Domestic Intelligence (ISA) on Salama’s “elimination” said that Salama joined Hamas in the early 1990s and was appointed commander of the Khan Younis Brigade under the command of Mohammed Sinwar.

A Hamas official quoted by Reuters described the attack as a “serious escalation” that showed that Israel had no interest in a ceasefire.

The ceasefire negotiations in Qatar and Egypt ended unsuccessfully on Friday, according to BBC information.