Israeli army claims killing of Islamic Jihad military official

GAZA, Sept. 17 (Xinhua) — The Israeli army claimed on Tuesday that it had killed an official of the Al-Quds Brigades, the armed wing of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), in a raid in the southern Gaza Strip.
Based on intelligence information, the army conducted an operation on Monday inside the humanitarian area in Khan Younis and killed Ahmed al-Hashash, commander of the PIJ’s rocket and missile unit for the Rafah area, army spokesperson Avichai Adraee said in a press statement.
He added that al-Hashash was considered an “important expert in the missile field and during the war, he served as the commander of the fighting and launch operations towards Israeli territory from inside the humanitarian area where he was stationed.”
So far, PIJ has not commented on the incident.
Israel launched a large-scale offensive against Hamas in Gaza to retaliate against a Hamas rampage through the southern Israeli border on Oct. 7, 2023, during which about 1,200 people were killed and around 250 others taken hostage.
The Palestinian death toll from ongoing Israeli attacks in the Gaza Strip has risen to 41,252, Gaza-based health authorities said in a statement on Tuesday. ■