Who is Mohammed Deif, the head of Hamas' military branch being pursued by Israel?
Israel has targeted the military head of Hamas, Mohammed Deif, in an operation against a designated aid area in the south of Gaza, resulting in the death of at least 90 Palestinians. The identity of Deif among the casualties remains uncertain. Who is Mohammed Deif?
Deif is a mysterious and influential figure, believed to be one of the key planners of the October 7 attacks. He has been in charge of the armed wing of the Palestinian militant group for over two decades.
Should his death be confirmed, Deif would become the most prominent Hamas leader killed since the conflict in Gaza commenced nine months ago. Israel has been aiming to dismantle Hamas following the October 7 attacks, yet the ongoing conflict and the presence of senior Hamas figures have made this objective seem unattainable.
It is speculated that Deif was born in the 1960s in the Khan Younis refugee camp, one of the many camps established in Gaza at the end of the 1940s for Palestinians who were denied the right to return to their homes by the newly established state of Israel.
Originally known as Mohammad Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, he later adopted the aliases “El Deif” or “the Guest” due to his practice of staying in various residences each night to evade detection and assassination by Israel.
Deif has been on Israel’s list of most wanted individuals for many years, accused of being responsible for the deaths of numerous Israeli citizens. Both the US and the EU have designated him as a terrorist.
He became a member of Hamas during the initial Palestinian uprising, known as the Intifada, which began in 1987. He was among the founding members of Hamas’s armed wing, the Qassam Brigades, established in the early 1990s. This military unit was created to support Hamas in its armed struggle against Israel and has since conducted numerous attacks, including suicide bombings.
From the start, Deif has been a pivotal figure in Hamas’s strategy against Israel. He was instrumental in orchestrating a series of suicide attacks in 1996 that resulted in the deaths of 65 people in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, among other acts aimed at disrupting the Israel-Palestine peace negotiations.
Deif advanced within the ranks of the Qassam Brigades to become its leader in 2002 following the death of the previous commander.
Recognized as an expert in bomb-making, he has played a crucial role in the development of Hamas’s network of tunnels and its expertise in bomb production.
Throughout his career, Deif has survived numerous assassination attempts, with a total of seven confirmed by Reuters. This includes a 2014 Israeli operation that claimed the lives of his wife, his seven-month-old son, and three-year-old daughter.
He was gravely injured in one of these attempts, suffering severe leg injuries and losing an eye.
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