Israeli military targets architects of Oct 7 attack, senior Hamas commander Raed Saed in Gaza strike

The Israeli military carried out an airstrike on a vehicle in Gaza City on Saturday that was reportedly carrying Raed Saed, a senior Hamas commander described as one of the planners of the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, according to an Israeli defence official and Israeli media reports.

Gaza health authorities said the strike resulted in four deaths. However, there was no immediate confirmation from Hamas or medical officials on whether Saed was among those killed.

In a brief statement, the Israeli military said it had struck a senior Hamas commander in Gaza City but did not disclose the individual’s identity or provide additional details.

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Should Saed’s death be confirmed, it would mark the most high-profile killing of a senior Hamas leader since a ceasefire agreement took effect in October.

The Israeli defence official said Saed headed Hamas’ weapons manufacturing apparatus.

Hamas sources have also described him as the second-in-command of the group’s armed wing, after Izz eldeen Al-Hadad.

Saed ⁠used to head Hamas’ Gaza City battalion, one ​of the group’s largest and best-equipped, those ‍sources said.

The war in Gaza began after Hamas-led militants killed 1,200 people, most of them civilians, ‌and seized 251 hostages in an attack on southern Israel on October 7, ‌2023. Israel’s retaliatory offensive has killed more than 70,700 Palestinians, most of them civilians, health officials in Gaza say.

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The October 10 ceasefire has enabled hundreds of thousands of Palestinians to return to Gaza City’s ruins. Israel has pulled troops ⁠back from city ⁠positions, and aid flows have increased.

But violence has not completely halted. Palestinian health authorities say Israeli forces have killed at least ​386 people in ‌strikes in Gaza since the truce. Israel says three of its soldiers have been ‍killed since the ceasefire began, and it has attacked scores ‌of fighters.