Jerusalem / Anadolu

- Israel usually announces killings of Palestinians despite ceasefire, claiming they are military leaders

- Facts indicate that most victims of the attacks are civilians, many of them women and children

On Thursday, Israel announced the killing of a Palestinian in southern Gaza Strip, claiming he was a military official, in a new violation of the ceasefire agreement that has been in effect since October 10, 2025.

This comes in the context of escalating Israeli announcements in recent weeks about attacks resulting in the assassination of field leaders from Hamas and Islamic Jihad, despite the ceasefire agreement being in effect.

While Tel Aviv claims to avoid harming civilians during its attacks, facts and data collected by Anadolu correspondents indicate that most victims of the attacks are civilians, many of them women and children.

The Israeli army and the General Security Service (Shin Bet) said in a joint statement that the air force carried out a raid in southern Gaza Strip on Tuesday, resulting in the death of Wahid Abu Salama.

The statement claimed that Abu Salama previously served as the commander of the western company in the Khan Younis area (south), without indicating his affiliation with a specific Palestinian faction.

In an attempt to justify the attack despite the truce, the army and Shin Bet claimed that Abu Salama "infiltrated Israeli territory during the October 7 attack and participated in kidnapping Israeli civilians to Gaza and detaining them."

On that day, Hamas and Palestinian factions including Islamic Jihad launched an attack on Israeli military bases and settlements adjacent to Gaza, which the factions said came in response to "the ongoing Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people and their holy sites."

Israel considers the October 7 attack the "greatest intelligence and military failure" in its modern history, according to Israeli officials.

The army and Shin Bet also claimed that Abu Salama had been working recently on "advancing additional plans," including an attempt to rehabilitate combat means to use against Israeli forces operating in the area.

As of 15:20 GMT, no immediate comment was issued by any Palestinian faction in Gaza regarding the Israeli claims.

Since October 2023, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza, resulting in the killing of more than 73,000 Palestinians and wounding more than 173,000, along with widespread destruction affecting about 90% of civilian infrastructure.

Despite the announced ceasefire agreement, Israel continues to carry out airstrikes and impose restrictions on the entry of humanitarian aid into the sector.

According to official data, about 1,084 Palestinians have been killed since the start of the ceasefire, and 3,491 others injured, most of them women and children.