Fate of top Hamas commander unclear after heavy Israeli airstrike – The Irish Times

The fate of Hamas’ top military commander remained uncertain after Israel targeted him in a major airstrike in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, as did what impact the attack would have on talks on a temporary ceasefire.

But the Israeli military and the domestic intelligence service Shin Bet said in a joint statement on Sunday afternoon that another target of the attack had been killed: Rafa Salameh, the leader of Hamas forces in Khan Younis in the southern Gaza Strip.

According to Israeli defense officials, the attack was preceded by weeks of surveillance of a secret complex used by Salameh.

In total, at least 90 people were killed in the attack, about half of them women and children, and 300 were injured, according to the Hamas-controlled health ministry in the Gaza Strip. Reports from Gaza speak of hospitals being overcrowded with injured Palestinians.

However, it remained unclear on Sunday whether the main target, Muhammad Deif, the leader of the Kassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, was among the dead.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a televised press conference on Saturday evening that there was still no “absolute certainty” as to whether Deif had been killed.

Deif is the second-highest Hamas politician in the Gaza Strip after its leader Yahya Sinwar. He is considered one of the architects of the October 7 attack on Israel that sparked the war in the Gaza Strip that has now lasted for ten months.

The Israeli military and Shin Bet described Salameh, the second target, as “one of Deif’s closest confidants.” They said he was also “one of the masterminds” of the October 7 attack and was responsible, among other things, for all projectiles fired from the Khan Younis area into Israeli territory.

Israeli officials said they received intelligence on Friday suggesting Deif was at Salameh’s compound. After more evidence of his presence emerged after 10 a.m. on Saturday, Israeli fighter jets struck the villa with at least five precision bombs.

After weeks of stalemate over a ceasefire, talks have resumed in recent days through American and Arab mediators on an agreement that would see the exchange of around 120 hostages remaining in the Gaza Strip – some of whom are still alive, others dead – for Palestinian prisoners.

It was not immediately clear what impact Saturday’s strike might have on talks, which are already fragile and stalled.

According to a UN estimate, it would take a fleet of more than 100 trucks 15 years to clear the Gaza Strip of nearly 40 million tons of rubble, at a cost of between $500 million and $600 million (€544 million and €600 million).

According to an estimate released last month by the UN Environment Programme, 137,297 buildings were damaged in Gaza, more than half of the total damage. Of these, just over a quarter were destroyed, about a tenth were severely damaged and a third were moderately damaged.

To dispose of the construction waste, large landfills of between 250 and 500 hectares (618 to 1,235 acres) would be needed, depending on how much could be recycled, the analysis found.

The conclusions underline the enormous challenge of rebuilding the Palestinian territory after months of grueling Israeli offensive that has led to the destruction of large parts of the homes and infrastructure.

In May, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) said that the reconstruction of houses destroyed during the war in Gaza could take until 2040 in the most optimistic scenario, with the total reconstruction of the entire area costing up to $40 billion. – Agencies