4:41 PM ET, March 18, 2024
The White House says a senior Hamas leader was killed in an Israeli airstrike last week
From CNN's Sam Fossum and Mick Crever
Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
Israel killed a senior Hamas leader in On Monday, the White House announced an airstrike last week.
Israel has made significant progress against Hamas. They were able to destroy a large number of Hamas brigades. Thousands of Hamas fighters were killed, including senior commanders. White House National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said that Hamas' third man, Marwan Issa, was killed in an Israeli operation last week.
Asked to confirm the White House statement, the Israeli military told CNN it would not comment.
Admiral Daniel Hagari, an IDF spokesman, said on March 9 that Israeli forces attacked an underground compound used by Issa and other senior Hamas officials in the Nazaer area of central Gaza. Because the complex was underground, the IDF could not verify whether Issa had been killed, Hajari said.
An Israeli military spokesman said last week that Issa is the deputy of Muhammad Deif, the head of Hamas's military department, and was one of the planners of the October 7 attack against Israel.
Sullivan was describing President Joe Biden's call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu earlier Monday when he said the senior leader had been killed. He said that Biden stressed the importance of having a “coherent and sustainable strategy” to defeat Hamas.
This post has been updated with comments from the Israel Defense Forces.
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