The Israel Defense Forces confirmed that Izz al-Din al-Haddad, described as one of the architects of the October 7, 2023 attacks on Israel, was killed in a precise strike in northern Gaza City. The military stated that al-Haddad had recently worked to rebuild Hamas’s military capabilities and plan attacks against Israeli civilians and military personnel, despite a US-brokered ceasefire agreement in October 2023.
Hamas confirmed al-Haddad’s death and reported that his wife and daughter were also killed in the same airstrike. The IDF stated that al-Haddad had managed Hamas’s hostage captivity system during the war and had surrounded himself with hostages to deter elimination. He had succeeded Mohammed Sinwar as leader of Hamas in Gaza following Sinwar’s death in May 2025.
The IDF also confirmed the deaths of two other Hamas operatives in separate strikes in northern Gaza: Khamer Iyad Muhammad Al-Matouq and Khaled Muhammad Salem Jouda, both of whom had attempted to carry out attacks on Israeli troops. A third strike in central Gaza killed Abdel Rahman Mahmoud Jumaa Shafi, a member of Hamas’s Bureij Battalion, who had been involved in attacks on Israeli forces.