Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) Deir al-Balah Battalion commanders Abdallah Khatib and Hatem Abu Aljidian were eliminated on Saturday during a day of Israel Air Force strikes on PIJ and Hamas terrorists embedded in a humanitarian area, and schools in the Gaza Strip, the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) announced.
The statement noted that the Israel Air Force strike was precise and targeted an immediate threat in the area and that it was conducted to neutralize the danger posed by the terrorists.
Khatib reportedly commanded terrorist activity of the battalion during the October 7 massacre in southern Israel. The other commander, Aljidian, was the commander of the Islamic Jihad’s Eastern Deir al-Balah Battalion.
IAF strikes Hamas terror command center embedded in northern Gaza school
Earlier, IAF aircraft conducted a precise strike on Hamas terrorists operating from within a command and control center embedded in a structure that had previously served as a school building, the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) stated on Saturday evening.
The “Amr Ibn al-As” School, located in northern Gaza, was reportedly used by Hamas to plan and launch attacks both on Israeli forces in the Gaza Strip and on Israeli territory.
In a similar strike, the IDF reported early Saturday morning that during the previous night, the IAF struck a Hamas terrorist command and control center embedded within the Halima al-Sa’diyya school in northern Gaza.
The terrorists had also reportedly been using the command center to plan terror attacks.
Reuters, citing local medics, reported that the strike on the Halima al-Sa’diyya school killed at least eight people and wounded 15 others.
Reuters added that the school compound in Jabalya had reportedly been being used as a shelter for displaced persons.
Steps taken to reduce civilian harm
In the announcements of all the strikes mentioned, the IDF and Shin Bet stated that Israel had taken numerous steps to mitigate risk to civilians near the targets.
Additionally, they noted that IAF strikes had used precise ammunition, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence to mitigate risk further.
Hamas regularly exploits current or past civilian infrastructure to shelter its activities.
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