# 2024 targeted assassination of Muhammad Deif

On 13 July 2024, Israel air struck Al-Mawasi area in the Gaza Strip, with the goal of assassinating the military commander of Hamas, Mohammed Deif. Deif's current status is unclear. According to the Gaza Health Ministry, the attack killed at least 90 Palestinians and injured at least 300 in what Israel had designated a "safe zone" for civilians. and took place during the Israel-Hamas war.
According to the New York Times the main strike was likely caused by a 2000-pound bomb, deliveries of which are currently suspended by the US because of the likelihood of associated civilian casualties. A secondary strike fell outside the main target area and killed first responders, video showed many dead being carried away, some wearing Gaza Civil Defense vests.
The death in the strike of Rafa Salama, Deif's deputy and commander of Hamas's Khan Younis Brigade, who was also targeted in the strike, was confirmed by the IDF on 14 July but the death of Deif remained unconfirmed. An Israeli official told the Wall Street Journal on 14 July that there was "reason to believe the strike achieved its aim." Deif has been the Israeli military's 'most wanted' man since 1995 for killing Israeli soldiers and civilians and took part in the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel, which started the Israel–Hamas war. Israel has claimed that Deif was targeted in the strike which was denied by Hamas calling it a way of concealing the “horrific massacre” in a designated safe zone.

## Background

Mohammed Deif is the leader of the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas. He was one of the main orchestrators of the 7 October attacks, in which 695 civilians were killed. The Al-Mawasi attack took place in the wider context of the Israel-Hamas War. Deif has been on top of Israel's 'most wanted list' since 1995, and was behind a series of suicide bombings in 1996 that were intended to derail the peace process. Deif's survival from seven Israeli assassination attempts has earned him the nickname 'the cat with nine lives' among his Israeli adversaries. In the 2014 attempt, Israel killed Deif’s brother, his nephew, his niece, his wife, his 3-year-old daughter, and his 7-month-old son.

## Reactions
### Domestic

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said that Mohammed Deif and the commander of Hamas in Khan Younis were in the compound; the IDF said it is waiting for the result of the strike. Hamas dismissed the IDF's claim that it had targeted Mohammed Deif, stating that it served to "cover up the scale of the horrific massacre". Hamas also stated that "It is not the first time Israel claims to target Palestinian leaders, only to be proven false later". In a statement, Hamas announced: "The al-Mawasi massacre in Khan Younis has been committed against an area that is crowded with more than 80,000 displaced people. This is an obvious and clear confirmation from the Zionist government that it will continuing its war of extermination against our Palestinian people, through repeatedly and systematically targeting the defenceless displaced civilians in tents, shelters and residential neighbourhoods". The group made a statement on Telegram calling for the Palestinians of the West Bank and East Jerusalem to "mobilize" in response to the strike. Nabil Abu Rudeineh, a spokesman for the Palestinian Authority, said that US bears responsibility for Israel's actions and also stated that "The massacre in al-Mawasi is a continuation of the genocidal war against our people". The Palestinian Islamic Jihad condemned the attack, stating that "The horrific massacre committed by the Zionist entity in al-Mawasi near Khan Younis is an insistence on continuing the war of extermination against our people".
According to AlHadath, after the attacks Hamas launched an investigation for a "major internal breach".

### International

The Egyptian foreign ministry and Jordanian foreign ministry condemned the attack. Nasser Kanaani, a spokesperson for the Iranian foreign ministry condemned the attack, stating on X that the attack was the "latest crime in the series of crimes committed by the child-killing Zionist regime". The Houthi movement condemned the attack, calling Israel's leaders "war criminals" and stating that "The enemy's false claims about targeting leaders in the Palestinian resistance cannot cover up the ugliness of its crimes".