ISRAEL has eliminated two of its top three Hamas terror targets in a matter of days.
Now Yahya Sinwar, dubbed “Gaza’s Bin Laden”, is the last major kingpin left to hunt down.
Israeli forces confirmed this morning that a strike on Khan Yunis, southern Gaza, had killed Mohammed Deif on July 13.
The 58-year-old terror kingpin had worked as head of Hamas’ ruthless military wing, the al-Qassam brigades, since 2002.
IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari released footage online of the fierce hit, with an enormous explosion breaking out in a blitzed area of southern Gaza.
And in the early hours of Tuesday morning, another Israeli strike killed Hamas political boss Ismail Haniyeh as he slept soundly in Iran’s capital.
Both men, along with the ruthless Sinwar, masterminded the October 7 massacre which saw Hamas kill 1,200 Israelis and kidnap 250 more.
Since then the Gaza Strip has seen almost 10 months of war, with more than 35,000 Palestinians reportedly being killed in the conflict.
One of the founding members of the terror group, Haniyeh represented the bloodthirsty cult abroad for years, even past the death of his own children.
He was traced by Israeli spies as he attended the inauguration for the new Iranian president in Tehran on Monday.
Israel’s secretive Shin Bet intelligence arm discovered exactly which room of his accommodation Haniyeh was sleeping in, with scores of others also in the block.
A rocket was then launched from a drone into his room, detonating and killing him and his bodyguard.
The military wing of Hamas and its political arm have both taken a mighty blow after losing their leaders.
Last man standing Sinwar has evaded Israeli assassination in the Gaza Strip during almost 10 months of war.
He is believed to be hiding in the tunnels under the city, used by the terror group to move, transport weapons and even hold hostages.
The Hamas chief, according to Israel’s Channel 13 quoting intelligence sources, is reportedly on the move constantly.
Deif also dodged countless assassination attempts by hiding out in Gaza’s underground tunnel network — which he helped plan — or moving to new safe houses every night.
Born in a refugee camp, he changed his name to Deif — which means “The Guest” in Arabic — to reflect his constant moves from house to house.
Sinwar previously spent 22 years in an Israeli prison for terrorism, murder and kidnap plots before he helped orchestrate the October 7 massacre.
Wanted posters shared online, not by the IDF, previously appeared to offer a £25,000 reward to Palestinians who turned him in.
Israel’s military chiefs have repeatedly vowed that their renewed offensive must not end until he is dead.
Fears of an all-out war breaking out in the region are climbing after the assassination of a Hezbollah chief by Israel as well as Haniyeh and Deif.
Less than 24 hours before Haniyeh was killed on Monday, Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) reportedly took out Fuad Shukr, Hezbollah’s top military commander, in a targeted strike on Beirut.
Retired Israeli brigadier general Amir Avivi told The Sun on Wednesday that the strike which eliminated Haniyeh is evidence of Israel’s formidable capacity to hit its enemies anytime, anywhere.
He said: “Israel won’t stop until every single leader that was involved in this massacre will pay for what they did.
“Obviously, it sends a message that Israel can get to any terror leader anywhere.
“Even if it takes a bit of time, eventually, we’ll be able to target them”, he said.
And Amir told The Sun: “It’s not the first time that we see Israel operating at the heart of the Iranian regime.”
Israel has repeatedly vowed to completely eradicate Hamas terror operatives in the Gaza Strip.
Defence minister Yoav Gallant said this morning: “Muhammad Deif, the ‘Osama Bin Laden of Gaza,’ was eliminated on 13.07.24.
“This is a significant milestone in the process of dismantling Hamas as a military and governing authority in Gaza, and in the achievement of the goals of this war.
“This operation reflects the fact that Hamas is disintegrating, and that Hamas terrorists may either surrender or they will be eliminated.
“We will not rest until this mission is accomplished.”
