GERMANY PERSPECTIVE

Berlin, May 16, 2026. Iss al-Did al-Haddad, Hamas military chief in the Gaza Strip, was killed Friday in a targeted Israeli airstrike in a residential neighborhood of Gaza. The Israeli military and the domestic intelligence service Shin Bet jointly confirmed his death. Al-Haddad's family stated that his wife and one of his daughters also died in the attack, which targeted both a residential building and a vehicle. Local hospitals documented seven deaths and multiple injuries from this operation conducted late in the evening.

Al-Haddad had assumed command of Hamas's armed branch in Gaza following the elimination of Mohammed Sinwar. According to the Israeli military, he was among the organization's most senior commanders, having joined Hamas from its founding period. The Israeli Defense Ministry characterized him as one of the chief "architects" of the October 7, 2023 massacre, in which approximately 1,200 people were killed in Israel and over 250 taken hostage to the Gaza Strip. Hamas itself confirmed its commander's death in a statement, and his passing was announced in several mosques in the northern territory, where witnesses reported he was presented as a martyr.

The strike follows a sequence of targeted eliminations carried out by Israel in recent years against Hamas political and military officials. It occurs within a context of fragile ceasefire, in effect since October 2025 under U.S. mediation. This ceasefire, with its second phase designed to include Hamas disarmament, has not yet achieved that objective: the organization has not yet handed over its weapons, and both sides accuse each other of repeated violations of the agreement.

German media outlets note that more than 72,000 people are reported to have been killed in the Gaza Strip since the start of Israeli military operations, according to figures from Hamas authorities—data that cannot be independently verified. Deutsche Welle and Tagesschau document the facts without marked editorial commentary, underscoring both al-Haddad's attributed role in October 7 and the humanitarian context of the conflict.