Israel eliminates Hamas military leader Muhammed Odeh, ‘architect’ of Oct 7 attack, in Gaza

TEL AVIV: Israel Defence Forces eliminated Muhammad Odeh in Gaza, the new leader of the military wing of the terrorist organisation Hamas and one of the architects of the October 7 massacre. The operation was carried out on the instructions of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz, Israel PMO said in a post on X.

Odeh served as the head of Hamas’s intelligence staff during the October 7 massacre and was appointed – about a week ago – to replace Ezzedine al-Haddad, who was eliminated in an IDF strike in the Gaza Strip two weeks ago. Odeh was also responsible for the murder, abduction, and wounding of many Israeli citizens and IDF soldiers.

Benjamin Netanyahu also shared the confirmation in an X post, vowing to eliminate all involved in the October 7, 2023, massacre. “We have now struck Muhammad Odeh — the leader of Hamas’s military wing and one of the architects of the October 7 massacre. We will get to all of them,” he said.

Meanwhile, Israel continued its strikes in southern Lebanon after ramping up its operations yesterday, Al Jazeera reported. Two air strikes hit Burj Rahal, and a powerful strike was reported in Kawthariyat al-Ruz, in the Tyre district. The Israeli military also launched two air strikes on the town of Srifa, and one on Burj Rahal, in the Tyre district. Three raids were reported in the town of as-Sawana and one in Qabrikha, in the Marjayoun district, Al Jazeera reported.

Al Jazeera Arabic reported that Israeli air strikes across southern Lebanon had killed 31 people and left 40 others injured on Tuesday. The strikes come right after Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu on Sunday instructed the military to “press the pedal even harder” against Hezbollah, after a US official signalled that Washington would approve a larger operation against the Iran-backed terror group amid a surge in drone attacks, Times of Israel reported.

“We are at war with Hezbollah. Just in recent weeks, our brave fighters have eliminated more than 600 terrorists,” Netanyahu says in a video statement. “But we are not taking our foot off the gas. On the contrary, I have instructed them to press the pedal even harder.” (ANI)