The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) has revealed that it killed three high-ranking Hamas leaders in Gaza three months ago. Among them was Rawhi Mushtaha, identified by the IDF as the head of the Hamas government in Gaza. Mushtaha was killed alongside Sameh al-Siraj and Sami Oudeh, both of whom were responsible for security within the organization.

The IDF reported that the leaders were hiding in an underground compound in northern Gaza and were killed by targeted airstrikes. According to the IDF, Hamas did not announce the deaths of these leaders to avoid a loss of morale among its members and to maintain the functioning of its operatives.

Rawhi Mushtaha was described by the IDF as one of Hamas’s most senior members, with a direct role in decisions related to the group’s deployment of forces.

The announcement of these deaths comes amid a series of targeted strikes that have resulted in the elimination of prominent Hamas figures, following the group’s large-scale attack on Israel on October 7, and the subsequent conflict in Gaza.

Earlier this year, in August, the IDF confirmed that Hamas leader Wissam Khazem was shot and killed during a major Israeli operation in the West Bank. Additionally, Hamas political leader Ismail Haniyeh was killed in an explosion in Tehran in July, an incident Iran attributed to Israel, although Israeli officials did not confirm their involvement.

This week, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) in Iran stated that its missile attack on Israel was in retaliation for what it referred to as the “martyrdom” of Haniyeh and a violation of Iranian sovereignty.