An Israeli airstrike killed Samir Abu Younis, the commander of Hamas’s Rafah Brigade, in the al-Mawasi area of southern Gaza on Saturday, Nov. 14, officials in Israel and Gaza said.[1][2] Hamas confirmed his death early Sunday, Nov. 15.[2] The strike hit a tent in a camp for displaced people.[1][2]
Related: Israeli Strike on Gaza’s Nasser Hospital Kills Six, Including a Surgeon, Health Ministry Says.
What both sides said
The Israel Defense Forces and the Israel Security Agency, also known as Shin Bet, said in a joint statement on Telegram that they had “eliminated” Abu Younis.[1] The statement called him a “central figure among Hamas’s senior figures.”[1] It said he had worked to rebuild the brigade and had directed its fighters to attack Israeli civilians and troops.[1]
The Israeli military said that before the strike “steps were taken to mitigate harm to civilians.”[1]
Hamas’s military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades, announced the death on Telegram and called it a “cowardly assassination.”[1] A local Hamas official also confirmed the death.[1]
The strike on the camp
Eyewitnesses told the BBC that four missiles struck a tent in the Al-Waha camp, which shelters hundreds of displaced people in al-Mawasi.[1] A fire broke out afterward, the witnesses said.[1] Israel’s statement described the attack as a drone strike in Khan Younis, Al Jazeera reported.[2]
Counts of the injured differ. A medical source at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis told the BBC that three injured people and one body arrived there.[1] Al Jazeera said the strike wounded two other people, who were taken to the same hospital.[2]
Al-Mawasi is a coastal strip on the Mediterranean that is crowded with displaced Palestinians living in tents.[2] Israel previously designated the area a humanitarian zone.[2]
Who Abu Younis was
Abu Younis, 53, had led the Rafah Brigade since Sept. 15.[1] He took over after the death of the previous commander, Nael Abu Obeid.[1] He joined Hamas’s armed wing in 1991 and held several senior operational roles.[1]
Unverified claim: The Al-Qassam Brigades said Abu Younis was “one of the most important commanders involved in planning and overseeing the 7 October attack.”[1] The group made the statement on Telegram.[1]
Hamas said his funeral would be held Sunday afternoon in Khan Younis.[1]
Strikes continue under the ceasefire
A ceasefire took effect in Gaza in October 2025.[1][2] Israel has continued strikes that it says target remaining Hamas militants.[1] Israel argues the ceasefire agreement gives it the right to do so.[1]
Gaza’s Health Ministry said Saturday that Israeli attacks killed 16 people and injured 68 over the previous 48 hours.[2] The ministry said at least 1,643 Palestinians have been killed and 5,964 injured since the ceasefire began.[2] It put the total killed since October 2023 at 74,695.[2]
The war began with the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, which killed about 1,200 people.[1] Another 251 people were taken hostage.[1]
The ministry also said a nine-month-old baby died of hypothermia, raising cold-related deaths to 11.[2] Most of Gaza’s residents are displaced and living in tents and damaged buildings after recent heavy rain.[2]
For more coverage, see Middle East news, War news and World news.
Sources
- BBC News: Israel kills Hamas commander in strike on Gaza camp, officials say
- Al Jazeera: Israeli air strike kills senior Hamas commander in Gaza
Read next in Warfare
IranNetanyahu Says Iran Is Reviving Its Nuclear Program as He Presses Eisenkot for a Unity Government
WarfareBessent Says He Won’t Be Cowed by Iranian Threats as Israel Warns of Drone Attacks on Its Leaders
IranMossad Chief Gofman Is in Washington for Iran War Talks With CIA Director, Jerusalem Post Reports
Most read this week
- Finland Confirms Strike on Russian Warship in Gulf of Finland; Ukraine’s SBU Claims Drone Attack
- U.S. Envoys Witkoff and Kushner Hold Talks With Putin in Moscow, Then Head to Dublin to Brief Zelensky
- Nvidia Board Hires Wachtell’s Joon Kim to Lead Huang Probe as Shares Fall 5.47% and an Investor Sues
- Drones Kill Workers at Zaporizhzhia Nuclear and Thermal Plants, IAEA Says, as Russian Strikes Hit 5 Substations
- Senior U.S. Army Soldier Arrested in England on Suspicion of Spying for Russia
Latest
- Notre Dame Routs Boston College 41-7, Leaving the Eagles Needing Both Remaining Games for a Bowl
- Wild Beat Bruins 6-2 at TD Garden, Handing Boston Back-to-Back Home Losses for the First Time
- Italy Fines Meta €805 Million Over Facebook’s Default Access to Android Photo Galleries
- SpaceX Catches Starship’s Upper Stage at the Tower for the First Time, 22.5 Hours After Launch
- Two Nvidia Investors With $2.13 Billion at Stake Ask Board to Keep Jensen Huang’s Return Possible
Get The Boston Report Briefing
Our free weekly email with the most important stories from Boston and the world. Unsubscribe anytime.
Free. We never sell your address. Privacy policy