Airstrike in Gaza City eliminated most recent commander of Hamas

The IDF and Shin Bet confirmed that an airstrike in Gaza City on Sunday eliminated the most recent commander of Hamas’s Shejaiya Battalion, Muhammad al-Ajlah.

Ajlah is the fifth commander of the Shejaiya Battalion killed by Israeli forces since the war began. During his time in the battalion, he led the combat support company, overseeing the arming of Hamas terrorists with weapons used in attacks on both Israeli civilians and military personnel.

He assumed command after the death of Haitham Khalil, who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on April 9. Before Khalil, Jamil Omar Jamil Wadiya had briefly led the battalion until his death in March.

Wadiya himself had replaced two commanders who were eliminated in December 2023: Wissam Farhat, killed on December 2, and his successor Emad Qariqa, who was killed just a week later.

The strike that killed Ajlah took place in the Shejaiya neighborhood of Gaza City. The IDF emphasized that measures were taken during the operation to reduce harm to civilians.

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