Hamas said a senior commander who helped plan and oversee the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel was killed on Saturday in an Israeli airstrike on a tent camp in the Al-Mawasi area of southern Gaza; officials in Israel and Gaza also said he had been killed.
Samir Abu Younis, 53, the newly appointed commander of the Rafah Brigade, was targeted in a drone strike, the Israeli military and Shin Bet said. Eyewitnesses said four missiles struck a tent sheltering displaced people in the Al-Waha camp, causing a fire. A medical source said three injured people and a dead body had arrived at Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis.
The Israel Defence Forces and the Israel Security Agency (ISA) said in a statement that they had “eliminated” Younis, describing him as a “central figure among Hamas's senior figures” who had acted with the aim of trying to restore the brigade’s strength and had directed militants to carry out attacks against Israeli civilians and troops. Al-Qassam Brigades wrote that Younis was “one of the most important commanders involved in planning and overseeing the 7 October attack” and called his killing a “cowardly assassination”. His funeral is to be held on Sunday afternoon in Khan Younis.
Younis had been commander of the Rafah Brigade since 15 September, after his predecessor, Nael Abu Obeid, was killed. He joined Hamas's armed wing in 1991 and held several senior operational roles in Rafah before becoming commander.
The October 2025 ceasefire halted major fighting in the Israel-Gaza war but has not stopped Israeli attacks. Since the ceasefire took effect on 11 October 2025, at least 1,643 Palestinians have been killed and 5,964 injured, according to Gaza's Health Ministry. The ministry also reported that at least 850 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble. Gaza's Health Ministry says at least 74,695 Palestinians have been killed and 176,093 injured since the war began in October 2023.
Separately, the World Health Organization said respiratory illnesses are surging in Gaza, with acute respiratory infections 33,000 cases higher than at the same time last year. Heavy rains have flooded tens of thousands of tents housing displaced people, and nearly a million displaced people live in flood-exposed areas, 400,000 of them at extremely high risk. The WHO representative for the Occupied Palestinian Territory, Dr Reinhilde Van De Weerdt, said: “It is shocking that just a few days of rain really showed us what the coming months will bring. And winter has not even fully set in. The worst really is yet to come.”
The WHO called for laboratory equipment to be allowed into Gaza for patient diagnosis. COGAT, the Israeli military agency coordinating aid, said Israel has facilitated the entry of all medicines requested by international aid organisations and that X-ray machines, oxygen generators, batteries and generators have entered Gaza. It said equipment for reconstruction will be permitted only after Hamas is fully disarmed.
Analysis
Why This Matters
- The killing of a senior Hamas commander who planned the 7 October attack may escalate tensions and undermine the already fragile ceasefire.
- The strike on a tent sheltering displaced people, in an area previously designated a humanitarian zone, raises serious concerns about civilian protection under the ceasefire terms.
- The worsening health crisis in Gaza, with surging respiratory infections and winter flooding, affects nearly a million displaced people and could lead to a public health disaster.
Background
The Hamas-led attack on 7 October 2023 killed about 1,200 people in southern Israel and took 251 hostages, triggering a war in Gaza that has killed more than 74,000 people. An October 2025 ceasefire halted major fighting but permitted Israel's continued strikes against what it calls remaining militants. The Al-Mawasi area, a coastal strip in southern Gaza, has been repeatedly attacked despite Israel previously designating it a humanitarian zone.
Key Perspectives
Israel Defence Forces and ISA: Said Younis was a "central figure" who acted to try to restore the brigade's strength and directed attacks against Israeli civilians and troops; steps were taken to mitigate harm to civilians before the strike.
Al-Qassam Brigades (Hamas): Described Younis as one of the most important commanders involved in planning and overseeing the 7 October attack and called his killing a "cowardly assassination".
WHO: Warns that acute respiratory infections are 33,000 cases higher than last year, with cold, flooding, overcrowding and poor ventilation expected to push numbers higher, calling for laboratory equipment to enter Gaza to prevent a public health disaster.
COGAT (Israeli military agency): Said it has facilitated the entry of all requested medicines, and that reconstruction equipment will only be allowed after Hamas is fully disarmed.
What to Watch
- Whether Israel expands the "Yellow Line" further in southern Gaza, which the WHO says is squeezing displaced people into smaller areas and worsening health conditions.
- The number of cold-related deaths in Gaza, which has already reached 11, including a nine-month-old baby, as winter sets in.
- Any comment from international mediators on the strike's compatibility with the ceasefire terms.
Checked
12 claims in this story checked against 3 sources: 12 supported.
Show each claim
- SupportedThe headline says an Israeli airstrike killed a Hamas commander who was said to have helped plan the 7 October attack.BBC News: “A senior Hamas figure who helped plan and oversee the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel has been killed in an Israeli airstrike, officials in Israel and Gaza have said.”
- SupportedHamas said a senior commander who helped plan and oversee the 7 October attack was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Saturday.RTÉ News: “Hamas said a senior commander who helped plan and oversee the 7 October 2023 attack on Israel had been killed in an Israeli airstrike”
- SupportedSamir Abu Younis was 53 and the newly appointed commander of the Rafah Brigade.BBC News: “Samir Abu Younis, the newly appointed commander of the Rafah Brigade”
- SupportedThe IDF and ISA said they had “eliminated” Younis.BBC News: “The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) and Israel's security agency, the ISA, confirmed in a statement on Telegram that it had "eliminated" Younis.”
- SupportedThe IDF and ISA described Younis as a “central figure among Hamas's senior figures”.BBC News: “Describing him as a "central figure among Hamas's senior figures"”
- SupportedAl-Qassam Brigades called Younis “one of the most important commanders involved in planning and overseeing the 7 October attack”.BBC News: “Al-Qassam Brigades wrote on Telegram that Younis had "participated in numerous high-profile operations and resisted enemy incursions", and was "one of the most important commanders involved in planning and overseeing the 7 October attack".”
- SupportedAl-Qassam Brigades called Younis's killing a “cowardly assassination”.BBC News: “It described his killing as a "cowardly assassination".”
- SupportedEyewitnesses said four missiles struck a tent in the Al-Waha camp, which shelters displaced people, and caused a fire.BBC News: “Eyewitnesses in Gaza said four missiles struck a tent in the Al-Waha camp, which shelters hundreds of displaced people in Al-Mawasi, causing a fire to break out.”
- SupportedA medical source said three injured people and a dead body had arrived at Nasser Hospital.BBC News: “A medical source at Nasser Hospital in the southern city of Khan Younis said three injured people had arrived there, as well as a dead body.”
- SupportedSince the ceasefire took effect on 11 October 2025, at least 1,643 Palestinians have been killed and 5,964 injured; at least 850 bodies have been recovered from under rubble.Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera: “Since the “ceasefire” in Gaza took effect on October 11, 2025, Israel has killed at least 1,643 Palestinians and injured 5,964. At least 850 bodies have been recovered from under the rubble.”
- SupportedThe Health Ministry says at least 74,695 Palestinians have been killed and 176,093 injured since the war began in October 2023.Al Jazeera – Breaking News, World News and Video from Al Jazeera: “Since Israel began its genocidal war on Gaza in October 2023, at least 74,695 people have been killed and 176,093 injured, according to the Health Ministry.”
- SupportedThe WHO representative said: “It is shocking that just a few days of rain really showed us what the coming months will bring. And winter has not even fully set in. The worst really is yet to come.”RTÉ News: “"It is shocking that just a few days of rain really showed us what the coming months will bring. And winter has not even fully set in. The worst really is yet to come," Ms Van De Weerdt said.”