The IDF confirmed it killed Hamas senior commander Yassin Rabia in a targeted airstrike on a compound in Rafah late Thursday night. Rabia was reportedly responsible for overseeing the security of Israeli hostages and orchestrating attacks in the West Bank. The strike also killed another senior Hamas operative, Khaled Nagar.
The elimination of Rabia marks a significant blow to Hamas’s command structure, particularly concerning hostage management and coordination of terror activities in the West Bank. The IDF is intensifying efforts in Rafah as it seeks to dismantle Hamas’s remaining leadership and rescue hostages amid increasing international scrutiny of operations in southern Gaza.
According to the IDF, the strike was based on precise intelligence gathered jointly with Israel’s Shin Bet security service. Yassin Rabia was identified as head of Hamas’s Judea and Samaria (West Bank) headquarters and was responsible for funding, planning, and overseeing multiple deadly attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers during the Second Intifada. He had been convicted in absentia for previous attacks in 2001 and 2002 that killed several IDF soldiers and civilians.
Khaled Nagar, also killed in the strike, was described by Israeli officials as a senior operative in Hamas’s West Bank command structure. Like Rabia, Nagar was involved in orchestrating terror operations, including recruitment and weapons coordination in the West Bank from Gaza.
The strike took place in Tal al-Sultan, an area in northwest Rafah, where the IDF has recently expanded operations. Palestinian reports claim that several others were killed and injured in the strike, including civilians, though the exact toll is unconfirmed. The IDF said it was assessing the results of the strike.
This targeted killing follows reports earlier this week that Israeli intelligence believes fewer than 100 hostages remain alive in Gaza, out of the roughly 250 taken during the October 7 Hamas attack. Many are feared to be held in tunnels or guarded compounds in southern Gaza, including Rafah.
Israeli military spokesperson Rear Adm. Daniel Hagari said in a statement, “Yassin Rabia was a key figure in orchestrating Hamas terror activities in the West Bank and played a significant role in holding hostages in Gaza. His elimination weakens Hamas’s operational capacity.”
Hamas has yet to issue an official statement, but sources in Gaza accused Israel of committing a “massacre” in Rafah and vowed retaliation. The Gaza Health Ministry, run by Hamas, claimed that women and children were among those killed in the strike.
International reactions have been cautious. The Biden administration reiterated calls for minimizing civilian harm, with a U.S. State Department official telling reporters, “We continue to urge Israel to take every measure to protect innocent life while pursuing its military objectives.”
The strike is expected to increase pressure on Hamas’s command network in Rafah, where remaining operatives are believed to be concentrated. Israel is also facing mounting international legal and diplomatic scrutiny over its military actions in Rafah, including a recent ruling by the International Court of Justice demanding a halt to operations that endanger civilian life.
Meanwhile, hostage negotiations remain stalled, with indirect talks between Israel and Hamas mediated by Egypt and Qatar showing little progress. Israeli officials hope that further decapitation of Hamas leadership may shift the balance in future negotiations.
