IDF and Shin Bet Say Hamas Rafah Brigade Commander Killed in Southern Gaza Strike

The IDF and Shin Bet announced overnight (Tuesday) that they had killed Na'el Abu Ubeid, the Rafah Brigade commander and head of operations for Hamas's military wing. The killing was carried out in a strike on a vehicle in western Gaza City.

Abu Ubeid, considered a central figure among Hamas's senior officials, was appointed to command the Rafah Brigade after Mohammed Shabana was killed. Over the years, he held a number of positions in the brigade, including deputy commander of the Rafah Brigade and commander of the Tel al-Sultan and Yibna battalions.

In his senior role, Abu Ubeid was responsible for managing the brigade's terrorists and directing them in advancing and carrying out terrorist plans against IDF forces and Israeli civilians. At the same time, he worked to rebuild the Rafah Brigade's military capabilities after it suffered, according to the security forces, a devastating blow during the war.

The IDF and Shin Bet said that security forces remain deployed in the area in accordance with the agreement and will continue operating to remove any immediate threat.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu addressed the killing: "No terrorist is immune, and Hamas will not be in Gaza."

Defense Minister Israel Katz added: "The policy that the prime minister and I are leading, and that the IDF is carrying out in the most professional and appropriate manner, is clear: We eliminate terrorists and remove threats, and do not attack civilians or uninvolved people, unlike the blood libel spread by the creators of the film No Other Land against our heroic soldiers. No terrorist is immune, and Hamas will not be in Gaza."