The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Wednesday announced that top Hamas commander Ibrahim Biari, who was responsible for the brutal surprise attack on Israel on October 7, was eliminated in an airstrike on Gaza.
"IDF fighter jets eliminated Ibrahim Biari, Commander of Hamas' Central Jabaliya Battalion. Biari was one of the leaders responsible for the murderous terror attack on October 7th," the IDF said on social media platform X.
According to the military, a large number of militants were killed alongside Biari in the airstrike, which damaged Hamas' command and control in the area. The underground terrorist infrastructure also collapsed following the strike.
Who is Ibrahim Biari?
Biari was the commander of Hamas' Central Jabaliya Battalion. According to the IDF, Biari was responsible for dispatching 'Nukhba' (elite) forces of the Hamas group to Israel to carry out a devastating attack on October 7 that resulted in the deaths of more than 1,400 people.
Biari was also allegedly involved in dispatching terrorists in the 2004 Ashdod Port terror attack, in which 13 Israelis were killed. He also directed rocket attacks towards Israel over two decades and is responsible for attacking IDF forces in Gaza, the military said.
Under his command, the Central Jabaliya Battalion took control of several buildings in the area. Several of such buildings were destroyed in the Israeli airstrikes.
Israeli airstrike on Jabaliya refugee camp
Meanwhile, Gaza's Hamas-run Interior Ministry on Tuesday said that at least 50 people were killed as Israeli airstrikes struck the Jabaliya refugee camp in northern Gaza, as reported by the Times of Israel.
“More than 50 martyrs and around 150 wounded and dozens under the rubble, in a heinous Israeli massacre that targeted a large area of homes in Jabaliya camp,” a ministry statement says. Residents said that the ground began to collapse after the strike and buildings fell into sinkholes.
The death count has not been verified yet. According to the IDF, roughly 50 terrorists were killed in Israeli attacks on Tuesday as the military captured a Hamas 'military stronghold' in northern Gaza.
The strikes were condemned by Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia and Qatar. The Egyptian foreign ministry described the airstrikes as “inhumane,” and as a “blatant violation of international law,” and warned of the consequences of “indiscriminate attacks on civilians in and around hospitals, where they seek refuge.”
Saudi Arabia expressed its “complete rejection of the Israeli occupation forces’ repeated targeting of sites crowded with civilians.”
Israeli soldiers clash with Hamas
The IDF announced that nine more soldiers have been killed fighting Hamas militants in northern Gaza. Earlier, Israel said two of its soldiers were killed in fighting in northern Gaza, the first military deaths it reported since the ground offensive into the tiny Mediterranean territory accelerated late last week.
Some 800,000 Palestinians have reportedly fled to the south, but many have not, in part because they say nowhere is safe as Israeli airstrikes in the south have continued to cause civilian deaths.
Additionally, Bolivia’s government severed diplomatic relations with Israel on Tuesday, accusing it of carrying out “crimes against humanity” in Gaza, and Chile and Colombia recalled their ambassadors to Israel as they criticized the Israeli military offensive against Hamas terrorists.
“Bolivia decided to break diplomatic relations with the State of Israel in repudiation and condemnation of the aggressive and disproportionate Israeli military offensive taking place in the Gaza Strip,” Freddy Mamani, Bolivia’s deputy foreign minister, said at a news conference.
More than 8,500 Palestinians have been killed in the war, mostly women and minors, the Gaza Health Ministry said on Tuesday. Over 1,400 people have died on the Israeli side, mainly civilians killed during Hamas' initial attack, also an unprecedented figure. Palestinian militants also abducted around 240 people during their incursion and have continued firing rockets into Israel.
(with agency inputs)
ALSO READ | Yemen's Iran-backed Houthi rebels attack Israel with drones and missiles, promise further strikes
