- Home
- War in the Middle East
- Israel Kills Ismail Haniyeh's Sons in Gaza Strike
Israel's military confirmed Wednesday its forces had carried out an air strike in Gaza that killed three of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh's sons.
Hamas' political chief, Ismail Haniyeh, had confirmed to Al Jazeera that three of his children and four of his grandchildren were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza City, on the first day of Eid al-Fitr.
The Qatar-based political head of the Palestinian militant group confirmed to Al Jazeera "the martyrdom of my three sons and some of my grandchildren."
"I am grateful to God for the honor he has given me in the deaths of three of my children and a few of my grandchildren," Haniyeh added.
Hamas has blamed Israel for the deaths of Haniyeh's sons and grandchildren, stating they "took advantage of the holiday and slaughtered them."
According to Al Jazeera, a drone hit the family's car in the northern Gaza Strip's Al-Shati refugee camp.
He told Al Jazeera that now nearly "60 members of my family have been martyred, including my grandchildren, my brother's sons, my sister's sons and my cousins".
"There is no doubt that this criminal enemy is driven by the spirit of revenge and the spirit of murder and bloodshed, and it does not observe any standards or laws," Haniyeh said, adding that 60 members of his family have been killed since the start of the war.
"We’ve seen it violate everything on the land of Gaza. There is a war of ethnic cleansing and genocide. There is mass displacement."
An Israeli source had told Haaretz that Hamas could use this opportunity to derail the proposed hostage deal due to the assassination of Haniyeh's children.
The Islamist group's chief was quick to comment on the subject, saying that the killing of his sons will not affect their ceasefire demands, as reported by Reuters.
Read more
Comments