Israel targeted in an airstrike on Saturday. He was located in the Mawasi area of southern Gaza, which was designated as a humanitarian zone early in the war. Whether or not Deif is dead may not be that important.
If he is dead, it will have removed a key commander who has had the unique ability to elude targeted strikes in the past. Al-Ain media in the UAE referred to him as a “ghost” who has nine lives, for instance. The problem with Deif is that he was able to become so powerful in the first place.
Israel has eliminated a number of Hamas commanders and leaders in the past, including Ahmed Yassin, Abdel Rantisi, Salah Mustafa Muhammad Shehade, and others during the Second Intifada, for instance. and Marwan Issa were eliminated after October 7. It’s not entirely clear how much of a setback this has been for Hamas.
The organization has replaced leaders in the past, and it also assumed after October 7 that it would lose most of the leaders in Gaza. However, Hamas has insulated itself well from major repercussions for October 7. This is the wider problem that Deif represents in a sense.
Because Deif is never seen in public and has existed as a kind of “ghost” for so long, it’s possible to assume that the real story of Hamas is not found in its murderous leaders in Gaza or their battalion and brigade commanders. Israel already believes it has eliminated sixty percent of the Hamas fighters that existed in October. Most Hamas battalions have supposedly been defeated.
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