Israeli media reported on Saturday that the Israeli army carried out a morning strike targeting Ali al-Amoudi, deputy head of Hamas’s political bureau and the movement’s current leader in the Gaza Strip, in an attempt to assassinate him west of Gaza City. The outcome of the operation and whether al-Amoudi was injured in the strike remained unclear.
Ali al-Amoudi’s fate remains unclear
Israel’s Channel 12 quoted sources as saying the operation targeted al-Amoudi in his capacity as Yahya Sinwar’s successor as Hamas’s leader in the Strip. The sources said the outcome of the strike had not been determined, amid a lack of confirmed information about the fate of the movement’s leader following the attack.
The assassination attempt coincided with an Israeli air strike on a residential building west of Gaza City, killing at least five Palestinians — four women and a man — and injuring more than five others to varying degrees, according to Palestinian medical and local sources. One of the injured was reported to be in critical condition.
Strike damage and search operations continue
Medical sources at al-Shifa Medical Complex said the victims’ bodies were taken to the hospital along with a number of injured people. Local sources and eyewitnesses said the strike hit the ground floor of the al-Asala building, near the United Nations roundabout west of the city. The bombardment caused extensive damage to the ground and first floors, while search-and-rescue teams continued working at the site.
Officials in the health and civil defence sectors said the initial death toll was at least five, while residents said other people had been inside the building when it was struck and that some could remain missing beneath the rubble. The strike came amid an Israeli escalation against Hamas in recent weeks.
Israel says the movement is working to rearm and is carrying out attacks that violate the ceasefire agreement reached through US mediation in October 2025. Hamas, for its part, denies attempting to carry out attacks or rebuild its arsenal and accuses Israel of undermining the ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip.
The exchange of accusations reflects the continuing dispute between the two sides over compliance with the agreement and responsibility for the escalation that followed its entry into force.
According to health officials in the Strip, at least 1,400 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli fire since the ceasefire in October 2025. The Israeli army, for its part, says four of its soldiers were killed by gunmen in Gaza during the same period.
