Commander of Islamic Jihad’s Gaza rocket squads killed In Israeli air strike
Ali Ghali, commander of Palestinian Islamic Jihad’s Gaza rocket squads, was killed in an Israeli air strike early Thursday morning.
The Gaza safehouse in Khan Yunis where Palestinian Islamic Jihad rocket commander Ali Ghali and two other terrorists were killed in an Israeli air strike on May 11, 2023. Photo by Majdi Fathi/TPS
Ghali was killed along with two other terrorists in an airstrike on a safehouse in Khan Yunis where they were hiding.
“Ghali was considered a central figure in the organisation and dealt with its routine management,” the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement.
Speaking with reporters, IDF spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said, “The strike was carried out thanks to successful intelligence, the identification of the hideout apartment, one floor where the operatives were struck. This was a very precise attack by the Air Force.”
Ghali was also a key figure in large barrages of rockets fired during conflicts in August 2022 and May 202l.
On Wednesday, Islamic Jihad fired more than 500 rockets, which damaged cars, homes and buildings in Israeli communities. There have been no Israeli fatalities, though a number of people have been injured.
Ghali was the fourth senior Islamic Jihad commander killed by Israel since Tuesday, when Jihad Ghannam, Tareq Izzeldeen and Khalil Al-Bahtini were killed in separate surprise strikes.
Bahtini was Islamic Jihad’s senior operational commander responsible for approving and carrying out all terrorist activities from northern Gaza. Ghannam was responsible for the coordination and transfer of money and weapons between the Islamic Jihad and Hamas. Izzeldeen managed the organisation’s terror activities in both Gaza and Judea and Samaria and helped transfer funds between operatives in both areas.
The strikes on the Islamic Jihad leaders come against the backdrop of a rocket barrage fired by the terror group following the death of Khader Adnan on May 2. The imprisoned Adnan, a senior Islamic Jihad figure, died after an 86-day hunger strike. The terror group had threatened throughout Adnan’s hunger strike that it would hold Israel responsible for its member’s death.
Hamas so far has stayed out of the fighting.
