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| Israeli Air strike on Palestinian [Photo courtesy: Reuters] |
An Israeli airstrike has assassinated Hamas spokesperson Abdel-Latif al-Qanoua in northern Gaza, marking another high-profile casualty in Israel’s intensifying military campaign.
The attack comes as Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu threatens to annex Gaza territory unless Hamas releases remaining hostages.
According to reports from Al-Aqsa TV and Shehab News Agency, al-Qanoua was killed early Thursday when Israeli warplanes bombed his makeshift shelter in Jabalia. Al Jazeera correspondent Hind Khoudary confirmed that several others, including children, were injured in the strike.
The assassination follows a series of targeted attacks on Hamas officials. Just days earlier, an airstrike on Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis killed senior Hamas finance official Ismail Barhoum, while another strike eliminated political leader Salah al-Bardaweel and his wife. Since the war began in late 2023, 11 members of Hamas’s 20-person political bureau have been killed, Reuters reports.
Israel resumed its brutal offensive on March 18 after a two-month ceasefire collapsed, leading to over 830 Palestinian deaths in just 10 days—more than half of them women and children, per Gaza’s Health Ministry. The UN’s humanitarian agency (OCHA) warns that 142,000 Palestinians have been newly displaced, exacerbating Gaza’s catastrophic aid crisis.
Hamas still holds 59 of the roughly 250 hostages taken during its October 7, 2023, attack, which killed 1,139 Israelis. In retaliation, Israel’s assault has claimed over 50,183 Palestinian lives and left 113,828 wounded.
With ceasefire talks stalled, Netanyahu has doubled down on military action, vowing to seize Gaza land unless Hamas surrenders the remaining captives. As protests erupt in Beit Lahiya—with some Palestinians condemning both Israel and Hamas—the world watches to see if diplomacy can halt the bloodshed before more lives are lost.