Key facts
- Israel announced Saturday it killed senior Hamas commander Raed Saad in a Gaza City strike.
- Saad was the head of weapons production for Hamas's military wing, the Qassam Brigades.
- The strike killed four people and wounded at least 25 others, according to Gaza health authorities.
- Hamas confirmed Saad's death, calling it a "blatant violation" of the US-brokered ceasefire.
- Saad was instrumental in planning the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israeli communities.
Israel announced Saturday it killed senior Hamas commander Raed Saad in a strike on a vehicle in Gaza City, an action Hamas condemned as a "blatant violation" of the US-brokered ceasefire. The Israeli military and Shin Bet intelligence agency stated in a joint announcement that Saad, described as the head of Hamas's weapons production and a prominent leader of the Qassam Brigades, was "eliminated" in Gaza City. Hamas sources also identified him as the second-in-command of the group's armed wing. The strike killed four people and wounded at least 25 others, according to Gaza health authorities. Hamas stated that Saad was instrumental in planning the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israeli communities. Israeli officials confirmed the attack occurred on the Al-Rashid coastal road in the Hamas-controlled part of Gaza. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu reportedly ordered the attack, alongside Defense Minister Israel Katz. The strike is considered the highest-profile assassination of a senior Hamas figure since the ceasefire took effect in October. According to Gaza's Hamas-run health ministry, over 70,700 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli military action since October 7, 2023, following the Hamas-led attack that killed about 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostages.