Israel says it has confirmed that chief of Hamas’ military wing was killed in a July strike

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said Thursday that it has confirmed that the head of Hamas’ military wing, Mohammed Deif, was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July. The announcement came a day after an apparent Israeli strike in the Iranian capital killed Hamas’ top political leader.

The rapid events this week have left U.S., Egyptian and Qatari mediators scrambling to salvage talks for a cease-fire deal in Gaza.

There was no immediate comment on the Israeli claim by Hamas, which had previously said Deif survived the strike in Gaza. A member of Hamas’ political bureau, Izzat al-Risheq, said in a statement Thursday that confirming or denying his death is the responsibility of the group’s military wing, known as the Qassam Brigades, which so far has been silent.

The apparent elimination of Ismail Haniyeh and Deif — two of Hamas’ most senior figures — brings a victory for Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu as Israeli forces continue to operate in Gaza.

After meeting with military officials Thursday, Netanyahu declared that Deif’s death “enforces a simple principle that we have established, that whoever hurts us, we hurt them.”

“We will exact a very heavy price for any act of aggression against us from any arena,” Netanyahu said. The White House said Netanyahu had a phone conversation later Thursday with President Joe Biden.

Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said the strike that killed Deif was a “significant milestone” toward achieving the goals of the war. “The results of this operation reflect that Hamas is an organization in disintegration,” he wrote on X.

Deif was one of the founders of Hamas’ military wing in the 1990s. He led the Qassam Brigades for decades through campaigns of suicide bombings against Israeli civilians, volleys of rocket fire into Israel and repeated Israeli assaults on Gaza since Hamas took power there in 2007.

He remained a mysterious, underground figure in Gaza until his death.