London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Oct 23, 2025

Gaza: Sixth militant commander killed in Israeli air strike as

Gaza: Sixth militant commander killed in Israeli air strike as

Israel has killed a sixth senior leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in an air strike in the Gaza Strip, as fighting between them escalated.

It said Iyad al-Hassani had directed the militant group's operations since his predecessor was killed on Tuesday.

Friday's strike, which medics said also killed another person, followed a barrage of rockets fired from Gaza, some of which reached near Jerusalem.

The chances of an imminent ceasefire appeared slim after the exchange.

However, a Palestinian official familiar with the talks taking place in Egypt told the BBC that Egyptian officials "presented this evening a new proposal for a ceasefire, which is being studied now". Egypt was also waiting for Israel's response, they added.

At least 33 Palestinians in Gaza have been killed - about half of them civilians - since Israel carried out a series of air strikes early on Tuesday that killed three top PIJ commanders, the Palestinian health ministry there says. Another 147 people have been wounded.

One Israeli civilian has been killed and five wounded by Palestinian rocket fire in the same period, Israel's Magen David Adom ambulance service says.


The fighting which resumed on Friday came after 12 hours of relative calm, during which there were several Israeli air strikes but no Palestinian rocket attacks.

Around midday PIJ militants launched dozens of rockets. Some were aimed towards the Jerusalem area, about 65km (40 miles) from Gaza.

The Israeli military said two rockets heading to Jerusalem were intercepted, but another rocket reportedly landed in an open field near the Jewish settlement of Bat Ayin in the occupied West Bank, about 16km south of the city.

PIJ said "the firing of rockets at Jerusalem is a message, and everyone should understand its aim".

Targeting Jerusalem, which Israel considers its capital, is meant to signal to Israel that the group is prepared to connect events in the city to those in Gaza.

It is the first time rockets have landed near there since a 10-day conflict between Israel and militants in Gaza in May 2021.

Israel responded to Friday's rocket fire with intensive air strikes.

Warplanes hit a multi-storey residential building in the northern Nasser area of Gaza City, killing two people. Five others were wounded, including a child, according to rescuers.

A PIJ spokesman confirmed the death of Iyad al-Hassani, according to AFP news agency.

Sources said Hassani was deputy head of Islamic Jihad's armed wing and the most senior figure in the group to be targeted by Israel so far in the fighting.

Israel's air force said Hassani had replaced Khalil al-Bahtini, who was killed on Tuesday, as PIJ's "commanding officer of the operation in the Gaza Strip" and described him as a "significant figure".

The identity of the second person was not immediately clear, but the air force described them as a PIJ "operative".

An Israeli official told the BBC hitting the senior chain of command was also meant as a warning to Hamas, the dominant armed group in Gaza, which so far is thought to have stayed on the sidelines of the current escalation.

More rockets were fired at southern Israeli communities following the strike and Israel said there was likely to be more long-range fire in response to what it called the "targeted killing" of Hassani.

On Thursday, another two top PIJ commanders - the head of its rocket launching force and his deputy - were killed in Israeli strikes in southern Gaza.

Rockets reached a block of settlements south of Jerusalem on Friday


This week's fighting is the heaviest since three days of hostilities between Israel and PIJ last August, in which 49 Palestinians were killed in Gaza.

At least 973 rockets and mortars have been fired from Gaza over the past four days, with 761 crossing into Israeli territory, according to the military. Most have been intercepted or have landed in open areas.

The military says 181 of the rockets fell short inside Gaza and that they have killed four people there, including three children. Islamic Jihad denies the allegation.

The military also says its strikes have hit 254 PIJ targets in Gaza. According to Gaza's housing ministry, 28 homes have been destroyed, 37 damaged so badly that they are uninhabitable, and 495 partly damaged.

Meanwhile, a British surgeon stranded in Gaza has told the BBC that more than 140 "desperately sick" patients there, most of whom have cancer, are being denied urgently-needed treatment while the crossing to Israel remains shut for a fourth day.

"The doctors I work with here have got multiple examples of people who are in desperate need of cancer treatment," Professor Nick Maynard said.

"These treatments are undoubtedly being delayed and potentially leading to deaths because of the delays now," he added.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Porsche Reverses EV Strategy as New CEO Bets on Petrol and Hybrids
Singapore’s Prime Minister Warns of ‘Messy’ Transition to Post-American Global Order
Andreessen Horowitz Sets Sights on Ten-Billion-Dollar Fund for Tech Surge
US Administration Under President Donald Trump Reportedly Lifts Ban on Ukraine’s Use of Storm Shadow Missiles Against Russia
‘Frightening’ First Night in Prison for Sarkozy: Inmates Riot and Shout ‘Little Nicolas’
White House Announces No Imminent Summit Between Trump and Putin
US and Qatar Warn EU of Trade and Energy Risks from Tough Climate Regulation
Apple Challenges EU Digital Markets Act Crackdown in Landmark Court Battle
Nicolas Sarkozy begins five-year prison term at La Santé in Paris
Japan stocks surge to record as Sanae Takaichi becomes Prime Minister
This Is How the 'Heist of the Century' Was Carried Out at the Louvre in Seven Minutes: France Humiliated as Crown with 2,000 Diamonds Vanishes
China Warns UK of ‘Consequences’ After Delay to London Embassy Approval
France’s Wealthy Shift Billions to Luxembourg and Switzerland Amid Tax and Political Turmoil
"Sniper Position": Observation Post Targeting 'Air Force One' Found Before Trump’s Arrival in Florida
Shouting Match at the White House: 'Trump Cursed, Threw Maps, and Told Zelensky – "Putin Will Destroy You"'
Windows’ Own ‘Siri’ Has Arrived: You Can Now Talk to Your Computer
Thailand and Singapore Investigate Cambodian-Based Prince Group as U.S. and U.K. Sanctions Unfold
‘No Kings’ Protests Inflate Numbers — But History Shows Nations Collapse Without Strong Executive Power
Chinese Tech Giants Halt Stablecoin Launches After Beijing’s Regulatory Intervention
Manhattan Jury Holds BNP Paribas Liable for Enabling Sudanese Government Abuses
Trump Orders Immediate Release of Former Congressman George Santos After Commuting Prison Sentence
S&P Downgrades France’s Credit Rating, Citing Soaring Debt and Political Instability
Ofcom Rules BBC’s Gaza Documentary ‘Materially Misleading’ Over Narrator’s Hamas Ties
Diane Keaton’s Cause of Death Revealed as Pneumonia, Family Confirms
Former Lostprophets Frontman Ian Watkins Stabbed to Death in British Prison
"The Tsunami Is Coming, and It’s Massive": The World’s Richest Man Unveils a New AI Vision
Outsider, Heroine, Trailblazer: Diane Keaton Was Always a Little Strange — and Forever One of a Kind
Dramatic Development in the Death of 'Mango' Founder: Billionaire's Son Suspected of Murder
Two Years of Darkness: The Harrowing Testimonies of Israeli Hostages Emerging From Gaza Captivity
EU Moves to Use Frozen Russian Assets to Buy U.S. Weapons for Ukraine
Europe Emerges as the Biggest Casualty in U.S.-China Rare Earth Rivalry
HSBC Confronts Strategic Crossroads as NAB Seeks Only Retail Arm in Australia Exit
U.S. Chamber Sues Trump Over $100,000 H-1B Visa Fee
Shenzhen Expo Spotlights China’s Quantum Step in Semiconductor Self-Reliance
China Accelerates to the Forefront in Global Nuclear Fusion Race
Yachts, Private Jets, and a Picasso Painting: Exposed as 'One of the Largest Frauds in History'
Australia’s Wedgetail Spies Aid NATO Response as Russian MiGs Breach Estonian Airspace
McGowan Urges Chalmers to Cut Spending Over Tax Hike to Close $20 Billion Budget Gap
Victoria Orders Review of Transgender Prison Placement Amid Safety Concerns for Female Inmates
U.S. Treasury Mobilises New $20 Billion Debt Facility to Stabilise Argentina
French Business Leaders Decry Budget as Macron’s Pro-Enterprise Promise Undermined
Trump Claims Modi Pledged India Would End Russian Oil Imports Amid U.S. Tariff Pressure
Surging AI Startup Valuations Fuel Bubble Concerns Among Top Investors
Australian Punter Archie Wilson Tears Up During Nebraska Press Conference, Sparking Conversation on Male Vulnerability
Australia Confirms U.S. Access to Upgraded Submarine Shipyard Under AUKUS Deal
“Firepower” Promised for Ukraine as NATO Ministers Meet — But U.S. Tomahawks Remain Undecided
Brands Confront New Dilemma as Extremists Adopt Fashion Labels
The Sydney Sweeney and Jeans Storm: “The Outcome Surpassed Our Wildest Dreams”
Erika Kirk Delivers Moving Tribute at White House as Trump Awards Charlie Presidential Medal of Freedom
British Food Influencer ‘Big John’ Detained in Australia After Visa Dispute
×