The Hamas, Hezbollah leaders bumped off by Israel since October 7 attack

Israel has killed several leaders from Hamas and its Lebanese ally Hezbollah, the two groups backed by Iran, during the past one year in Gaza and Lebanon in a war triggered by the Palestinian terror group’s cross-border raids on the Jewish nation on October 7 last year.

Both Israel and Hamas confirmed that Yahya Sinwar, the mastermind of the October 7 attack, was among the three who were killed in Israeli gunstrikes in Gaza on Thursday. Sinwar’s death has dealt a blow to Hamas, which is fighting a war against the Israeli military in Gaza.

Here is a detailed account of the key figures of Hamas and Hezbollah, part of Iran’s ‘Axis of Resistance’, who have been killed in these operations so far:

HAMAS

1. Yahya Sinwar – One of the most significant losses for Hamas was the death of Yahya Sinwar, who was identified by Israeli officials as the principal architect behind the October 7 terror attack. Sinwar, a key figure in Hamas’s military operations, was killed during a battle in Rafah in southern Gaza on Thursday.

He had a long history with Hamas, joining the group shortly after its establishment in 1987 and later forming its internal security force. After spending years in an Israeli prison, he was released in 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.

Sinwar became Hamas chief after the killing of the group’s then-leader, Ismail Haniyeh, in Iran in July. Sinwar was widely believed to be running the Gaza war from the tunnels underneath Gaza.

2. Ismail Haniyeh – Another major blow to Hamas was the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh, the head of Hamas’s political office, who was killed on July 31, while he was on a visit to Tehran. He was the Hamas chief from 2017 till his assassination.

According to Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, Haniyeh was killed by a short-range projectile. The explosion, which killed him, was a bomb that was smuggled into the guesthouse where he was staying. Hamas blamed Israel for the attack, but the Jewish nation did not claim responsibility.

Haniyeh crisscrossed between Turkey and Qatar, escaping blockaded Gaza’s travel curbs and also acted as a negotiator in truce talks between Israel and Hamas and as a mediator for Hamas’s ally Iran.

3. Mohammed Deif – A top Hamas military commander, Mohammed Deif, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on Khan Younis in southern Gaza on July 13, according to Israel. Deif was a key mastermind behind the October 7 attacks on Israel, which killed some 1,200 people.

Deif, who remained elusive during the Gaza war, had survived seven assassination attempts by Israel. Hamas has not confirmed Deif’s death yet.

4. Marwan Issa – Marwan Issa, the deputy commander of Hamas’s military wing in Gaza, was killed in an Israeli airstrike on the Nuseirat refugee camp on March 10. He was one of the key planners of the October 7 attacks.

5. Saleh al-Arouri – Saleh al Arouri, a co-founder of the Hamas’s military wing in the West Bank and a deputy political leader, was killed along with two other Hamas officials in an Israeli drone strike on a Hamas office in southern Beirut on December 25 last year. Al Arouri was a key intermediary between Hamas and Hezbollah.

He was also the founder of Hamas’s military wing, the Qassam Brigades.

6. Khalil Kharaz – Khalil Kharaz, the deputy chief of the Qassam Brigades in Lebanon, was killed in an Israeli drone strike on a car carrying Hamas terrorists near Tyre on November 21 last year.

HEZBOLLAH

1. Hassan Nasrallah – Israel killed Hassan Nasrallah, the chief of Iran-backed Hezbollah, in a massive airstrike on the group’s headquarters in southern Beirut on September 27.

He had led the group since 1992. His death marked a significant blow to Hezbollah as Israel had launched relentless strikes on the group in Lebanon.

2. Ali Karaki – Ali Karaki, a top commander of Hezbollah, was killed in the same airstrike that targeted Nasrallah. According to Israel, over 20 terrorists of varying ranks were killed in the strike on an underground bunker.

3. Hashem Safieddine – Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said an October 8 strike had probably “eliminated” Hashem Safieddine, who was widely tipped to succeed his cousin Nasrallah.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, however, gave an indication that Israeli airstrikes had killed two of Nasrallah’s successors, in a reference to Safieddine and a second person who was unidentified.

Hezbollah has not commented on the fate of Safieddine and others.

4. Fuad Shukr – A key commander involved in numerous operations against Israel, Fuad Shukr was killed in an Israeli strike on Beirut’s southern suburbs, a Hezbollah stronghold, on July 30.

In 2015, the US slapped sanctions against Shukr, accusing him of playing a key role in the 1983 bombing of the US Marine barracks in Beirut, which killed 241 American military personnel.

5. Nabil Kaouk and Ibrahim Qubaisi – Nabil Kaouk, a senior Hezbollah security official was killed in an Israeli airstrike on September 28. On the other hand, Ibrahim Qubaisi, a commander and leading figure in Hezbollah’s rocket division, died in an Israeli strike in Beirut on September 24.

6. Ibrahim Aqil – Hezbollah’s operations commander Ibrahim Aqil was killed in an Israeli strike in Beirut’s southern suburbs on September 20.

A member of the group’s top military body, the US had accused him of a role in the Beirut truck bombings that struck the US embassy in April 1983, which killed 63 people, and the bombing of the US Marine barracks six months later.

7. Mohammed Nasser – A senior commander in Hezbollah, Mohammed Nasser was killed in an Israeli airstrike on July 3. Israel claimed responsibility, saying he headed a unit responsible for firing at Israel from southwestern Lebanon.

Nasser was in-charge of a section of Hezbollah’s operations at the frontier, according to senior Lebanese security forces.

8. Taleb Abdullah – Israel said it killed senior Hezbollah field commander Taleb Abdallah in a strike that hit a command and control centre in southern Lebanon.

Abdullah was Hezbollah’s commander for the central region and was of the same rank as Nasser.

(with inputs from Reuters)