Al-Qassam announces Israel assassinated 'Rafah Brigade Commander' in a strike south of Gaza
Al-Qassam Brigades announced the killing of Samir Abu Younes, commander of the Rafah Brigade, in an Israeli strike in Khan Younis, which was confirmed by the Israeli army and the General Security Service.
Translated by Alqyas from Al-Wasat — Original source
The Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, announced on Sunday the assassination of Samir Mahmoud Abu Younis, commander of the Rafah Brigade and a member of its General Military Council, in an Israeli airstrike that targeted him west of Khan Younis in southern Gaza Strip on Saturday evening.
In a statement, the Brigades mourned “the great martyr and commander: Samir Mahmoud Abu Younis, member of the General Military Council of the al-Qassam Brigades and commander of the Rafah Brigade, who ascended to the Highest Companion on Saturday evening following a cowardly assassination operation.”
It clarified that Abu Younis, known by the kunya “Abu Mahmoud,” joined their ranks in 1991 and was previously detained in Israeli prisons. It added that he participated in military operations and clashes with the Israeli army during its previous invasions of the Strip and was among the active leaders during the Al-Aqsa Intifada (which erupted in 2000).
The Brigades noted that Abu Younis rose through leadership positions in the Rafah Brigade, “assuming command of the Western Battalion in succession to Commander Mahmoud Hamdan, and later assuming command of the Brigade in succession to Nael Abu Ayyad,” who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on September 15 last year.
It further stated that Abu Younis was among the prominent leaders involved in planning and overseeing the “Al-Aqsa Flood” operation on October 7, 2023. On that day, in response to “the daily crimes of the occupation against the Palestinian people and its sanctuaries,” Hamas and Palestinian factions launched attacks on Israeli military bases and settlements near Gaza, resulting in Israeli casualties and hostages.
Medical and local sources had previously told Anadolu Agency that Abu Younis was killed by an Israeli drone strike that fired four missiles, targeting a gathering of Palestinians in the Mawasi area west of Khan Younis on Saturday evening. The strike also left two Palestinians seriously injured.
On Sunday morning, the Israeli military and the General Security Service (Shin Bet) announced in a joint statement that they carried out an aerial strike in southern Gaza Strip, which they said resulted in Abu Younis’s death. The statement said Abu Younis “was a pivotal figure among senior Hamas leaders and directed plans and operations targeting Israelis and army forces.”
This assassination comes amid ongoing Israeli violations of the ceasefire agreement that has been in effect since October 10, 2025, which has so far resulted in the deaths of 1,643 Palestinians and injuries to 5,964 others as of Saturday.
The agreement was reached after two years of a genocidal war launched by Israel on October 8, 2023, which continued in various forms and left more than 74,000 dead and over 176,000 injured, along with massive destruction affecting 90 percent of civilian infrastructure.
