Israeli army announces assassination of Hamas leader in Tulkarm, West Bank

Israeli Army spokesperson Avichay Adraee posted on 'X' that the Israeli Army and Shin Bet have "assassinated the leader of the Hamas terrorist network in Tulkarm, which is located in the West Bank, who was planning an imminent attack inside Israel, along with other prominent leaders of the network."

In a joint operation conducted earlier on Thursday, Adraee stated that "fighter jets carried out an airstrike in the Tulkarm area based on intelligence from Shin Bet, killing Zahi Yasser Abdel Razeq Awfi, the leader of Hamas' terrorist network in Tulkarm."

According to the spokesperson, "Zahi Awfi had planned and led an attempted car bomb attack in the Atara area on September 2, 2024. He was responsible for supplying numerous terrorist operatives in the region with weapons and was planning large-scale attacks targeting towns in Judea and Samaria, as well as deep inside Israel, including an imminent operation."

Adraee claimed that "Awfi was involved in planning and executing several major terrorist attacks against civilians in Judea and Samaria, some of which resulted in Israeli civilian injuries. He was instrumental in establishing Hamas' terrorist infrastructure and assisted operatives in carrying out significant shooting and bombing attacks."

"During the operation," the post continued, "several other key operatives within the Tulkarm terrorist network were also assassinated."

"This operation adds to the list of significant targeted strikes carried out by the Israeli Army and Shin Bet in northern Samaria since the beginning of the war," Adraee concluded.