Israel targets Hamas perpetrators of Oct. 7 massacre
Israel is conducting an ongoing covert campaign—using the IDF, Shin Bet and Mossad—to locate and eliminate Hamas operatives involved in the Oct. 7, 2023 massacre, with recent strikes and intelligence operations reportedly killing multiple named militants. The Fox News piece names specific targets (e.g., Hasan Mahmoud Hasan Hussein; Yousef Juma’a; Mahmoud Afana; Mohammed Hassan Awad), cites Israeli and former intelligence officials describing the decades‑old doctrine of targeted retaliation, and notes U.S. citizens were among those taken hostage or killed in the original attacks.
International
Military
📌 Key Facts
- Israel says it eliminated Hasan Mahmoud Hasan Hussein, who led the Oct. 7 attack on a bomb shelter on Route 232 in Kibbutz Re'im where 16 people were killed
- Named militants purportedly killed include Yousef Mahmoud Muhammad Juma’a, Mahmoud Afana, and Mohammed Hassan Mohammed Awad (implicated in the capture/murders of the Bibas family)
- Article cites agencies and officials: IDF footage release, Shin Bet and Mossad intelligence roles, and quotes from Maj. Gen. (ret.) Amos Yadlin and Brig. Gen. (ret.) Lior Akerman; it also references Israel’s July 31, 2024 assassination of Hamas chief Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran
📚 Contextual Background
- When the leadership echelon of an armed group is degraded or communications are disrupted, decentralized or multiple armed actors can complicate centralized control and communication, which can make coordinated, full hostage releases difficult and lead to staged or phased releases as logistics permit.