Hamas confirms death of military chief Mohammed Deif

The military wing of Hamas, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, announced on Thursday the death of its longtime chief of staff, Mohammed Deif, a man who eluded Israeli capture for decades and was said to move like a ghost, thus earning the moniker "The Guest" or "Deif" in Arabic.

Israel declared it had killed the 59-year-old Deif in an air strike in al-Mawasi in southern Gaza in July, but there had been no confirmation from Hamas.

Given the uncertainty, the International Criminal Court issued a warrant for his arrest in November anyway, on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity, alongside warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and the now former Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant.

Israel killed two other Hamas leaders, Ismail Haniyeh and Yahya Sinwar, before their warrants could materialise.

Deif, whose real name is Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri, is believed by many to have been one of the planners of the 7 October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on southern Israel. The attacks killed at least 1,139 people, and 250 others were taken as captives back to Gaza.