Hamas spokesperson Abu Obeida killed in airstrike in Gaza City, says Israel

Israel on Sunday claimed to have assassinated Abu Obeida, the spokesperson for Hamas and one of the terrorist group’s most well-known figures.

Israel on Saturday attacked the Rimal neighbourhood of Gaza City and said it targeted an unnamed key figure of Hamas. The New York Times reported three Israeli officials as saying that the key figure was Abu Obeida.

The Israeli military on Sunday announced Abu Obeida’s assassination and said he was behind the “dissemination of psychological terror videos featuring kidnapped civilians and soldiers in the Gaza Strip”.

At least five people were killed in the Israeli attack that targeted Abu Obeida, according to the Palestinian Civil Defense.

The Israeli military said Abu Obeida’s real name was Hudahaifa Kahlout. Abu Obeida was the Arabic ‘kunya’ (nickname) that he was referred to in the Arab world that literally means ‘father of Obeida’.

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Just a day before his targeting, Abu Obeida had said in a statement that Israel would “pay the price” with “its soldiers’ blood” if it sought to control Gaza City.

‘Leader of Hamas’ psychological warfare’

In a statement in Hebrew, the Israeli military said that Abu Obeida was the leader of Hamas’ psychological warfare and propaganda efforts throughout the war.

The Israeli military said, “The terrorist served as the face of the Hamas terrorist organisation and, as part of his role, disseminated the organisation’s terrorist propaganda to promote terror activities and influence the Gazan public and Hamas supporters across the Middle East and the world. Additionally, he led Hamas’ psychological warfare and propaganda efforts throughout the war and beforehand.

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“Under Kahlut’s command, Hamas’ propaganda apparatus was responsible for distributing footage of the October 7 massacre, using documentation recorded by Hamas terrorists. He was also responsible for spreading incitement videos in the Arab world and among the Palestinian public to encourage similar acts of terror.”

Abu Obeida was one of Hamas’ best-known figures even though he never showed his face in public. He always covered his face with a kaffiyeh and often struck a defiant tone and threatened Israel with dire consequences.

Abu Obeida was killed as part of Israel’s renewed offensive to capture Gaza City. The offensive has been slammed across the world over concerns that it could worsen the humanitarian situation in Gaza that is already very dire.

The United Nations (UN)-backed group has already declared famine in the strip. Dozens of hunger-related deaths have been reported in recent months in the strip and hundreds more have been killed in attacks at food distribution sites that Palestinians attribute to Israeli forces. In July, the UN published a video that showed Israeli soldiers firing at Palestinians awaiting a food convoy in Gaza.