Israel targets Hamas’ military leader in Gaza. Who is he and what does it mean for the war?

RAMALLAH, West Bank (AP) — Israel on Saturday said it tried to assassinate Mohammed Deif, the shadowy leader of the Hamas group ‘s military wing who has long topped the country’s most-wanted list.

The strike took place in an Israeli-declared humanitarian zone in southern Gaza, killing at least 90 Palestinians and wounding nearly 300 more, according to local health officials.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said it was “still not absolutely certain” whether Deif and another target of the strike, Rafa Salama, were killed. He also told a news conference that Hamas’ entire leadership is marked for death.

Here is a closer look at Hamas’ elusive military leader and what his death could mean for the trajectory of the war.

Who is Mohammed Deif ?

Deif was among the founders of Hamas’ military wing, the Qassam Brigades, in the 1990s and has led the unit for over 20 years. Israel has identified him and Hamas’ Gaza leader, Yahya Sinwar, as the chief architects of the Oct. 7 attack that killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel and triggered the Israel-Hamas war.

For years, Deif has topped Israel’s most-wanted list. He is believed to be paralyzed after surviving multiple Israeli assassination attempts. He has not been seen in public in years, and only a handful of photos of him exist online. On the morning of Oct. 7, Hamas issued a rare voice recording of Deif announcing the “Al Aqsa Flood” operation.

Deif, like Sinwar, was born in the refugee camp of the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis in the early 1960s and was believed to have joined Hamas shortly after the formation of the Islamist Palestinian group in the late 1980s.

In 1989, during the height of the first Palestinian intifada, or uprising, Deif was arrested by Israel but later released.

Deif was promoted to head of the Qassam Brigades in 2002 after his predecessor was killed by Israel. He is thought to have helped expand Hamas’ labyrinth of tunnels that run beneath Gaza, and is held responsible by Israel for plotting attacks that killed scores of Israeli civilians, including suicide bombings.

Deif is so elusive that even his appearance and well being are points of speculation: Some media reports say he has used a wheelchair for years following injuries he sustained during past assassination attempts, while others report he is able to walk unassisted. His name, Deif, means the “the guest” in Arabic, an attribution purportedly reflecting his tendency to change locations frequently to hide from Israel.

The chief prosecutor of the International Criminal Court announced in May that he was seeking the arrests of Deif and Sinwar and Hamas’ exiled supreme leader, Ismail Haniyeh. The prosecutor, Karim Khan, said he is also seeking the arrests of Netanyahu and Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant.

What does it mean for the war and negotiations?

The killing of Deif would mark the highest profile assassination of any Hamas leader by Israel since the war began, signifying both a huge victory for Israel and a deep psychological blow for the militant group.

At a news conference Saturday night, Netanyahu said all of Hamas’ leaders are “marked for death.” He said that stepping up the pressure on the group by killing its leaders would move Hamas closer to accepting a cease-fire deal.

Killing Deif could also help push Netanyahu closer to a deal. The Israeli leader has said he will not end the war until Israel achieves its war goals, which include destroying Hamas’ military capabilities.

But killing Deif could also throw the ongoing cease-fire talks, which appeared to have made tentative progress in recent weeks, into disarray and would likely widen the gap between Hamas and Israeli delegations in Cairo.

“For the Israelis, it may give them the victory narrative they’ve desperately been chasing for nine months,” said Khaled el-Gindy, an analyst specializing in Palestinian affairs with the Washington-based Middle East Institute.

But el-Gindy believes it will harden Hamas’ position, too.

“Accepting a cease-fire in that context would seem like a surrender,” he said.

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