Hamas commander appears in Gaza after Israel claimed to have killed him: Reports
Quds News Network and other Palestinian outlets have shared footage of a man they identified as Hamas’s Beit Hanoon Commander Hussein Fayad talking to reporters in northern Gaza.
The Israeli military had said it killed Fayad in a tunnel in Jabalia in May.
In the video, published today, Fayad argues that Israel was defeated in the war. “Gaza emerged unbreakable, and we all saw how Gaza was – victorious, honourable with its head held high,” he said.
Throughout the war, the Israeli military announced it had assassinated several Hamas officials who turned out to be alive or were killed in later attacks.
Hamas disputes Israel’s claim of killing the Palestinian group’s top military official, Mohammed Deif, in July.
Israeli military admits Hamas commander not killed as previously claimed
We reported earlier that Palestinian outlets are sharing footage showing Hamas’s Beit Hanoon commander Hussein Fayad talking to reporters in northern Gaza, months after Israel claimed to have assassinated him.
Now, the Israeli military appears to have confirmed that Fayad is still alive.
The Times of Israel quoted the army as saying in a statement that the intelligence findings that Fayad was killed in May “were not accurate enough”.
Israeli army surrounds Rafah crossing with fortifications
New satellite imagery shows the Israeli military has built fortifications, sand berms, and paved a new road surrounding the Rafah land crossing from the Palestinian side in southern Gaza.
The photos also reveal a number of military vehicles are still inside the Rafah crossing along with engineering equipment.
The Israeli Prime Minister’s Office said soldiers have cordoned off the crossing and will monitor its operation, including supervising and pre-approving any convoys delivering desperately needed humanitarian relief.
The Rafah crossing is scheduled to reopen on Saturday during the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire agreement, following its closure by the Israeli military in early May 2024.
‘Hardest situation I’ve ever faced’: Palestinian woman freed from Israeli detention
Bushra al-Tawil, one of 90 Palestinians released in the first phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, has told the Anadolu news agency that she was mistreated while in Israeli custody.
Tawil said she was at a friend’s house when Israeli forces detained her in a raid.
“They wrecked the house and destroyed her belongings. They didn’t let me wear my headscarf. I was forcibly taken out of the house and held in detention for 14 hours without my scarf. It was the hardest situation I’ve ever faced in my life,” she said.
She said that an Israeli intelligence officer taunted her, saying, “You’ll spend years trying to repair this house, and you’ll owe your friend for the rest of your life.”
She said she replied, “I told him about the solidarity among Palestinians. I said, ‘We are in a state of war, everyone pays a price in their own way. No one owes anyone anything in our community. My friend will never ask anything from me,’”.
Tawil said she was unjustly detained nearly 10 months ago and held under administrative detention, which allows Israeli authorities to imprison Palestinians without charge.
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