According to the military, Tabash also oversaw the group’s surveillance and targeting operations. However, Hamas has not issued a response.
Tabash was a longtime Hamas member and a key figure in the group, described as a “significant source of knowledge.” He held several important positions, including battalion commander in Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade, according to a joint statement by the IDF and Shin Bet.
“Over the years, he was involved in terror activities and orchestrating attacks, including a 2005 suicide bombing at the Gush Katif junction in Gaza that killed Shin Bet coordinator Oded Sharon,” the Times of Israel quoted the joint statement as saying.
Tabash oversaw Hamas’ intelligence operations in southern Gaza, coordinated activities in the region, and played a key role in shaping the group’s combat strategy, the IDF and Shin Bet said.
The Israeli military also said that the surveillance and targeting unit, also led by Tabash, was responsible for gathering visual intelligence to identify targets for Hamas in both Israel and the Gaza Strip.
Osama Tabash’s killing a ‘major blow’ to Hamas, says Israel
The IDF claimed that Tabash played a key role in planning and coordinating infiltration and targeting strategies for the October 7 attack.
During the war, his unit gathered intelligence, tracked Israeli military movements in Gaza, and directed attacks on IDF troops, the military said.
The IDF also said that his killing was a major setback to Hamas’s intelligence-gathering efforts and its ability to target Israeli forces in the region.
Israel’s military offensive in Gaza has entered its fourth day, with ground forces expanding operations in both northern and southern parts of the enclave. Meanwhile, Israeli defence minister Israel Katz has warned of further escalation.
Katz said on Friday that Israeli forces would “intensify” their campaign against Hamas and apply “all military and civilian pressure, including evacuation of the Gaza population south and implementing United States President Donald Trump’s voluntary migration plan for Gaza residents.”
With Reuters inputs
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