Child among dead as airstrikes hit apartment and car; fate of Izz al-Din al-Haddad unclear.
Israeli airstrikes on May 15 killed at least seven Palestinians in Gaza, including a child, in an attack Israel said was aimed at Hamas’ armed wing chief Izz al-Din al-Haddad, though neither side has confirmed whether he was hit.
Strike Aimed At Hamas Military Chief
Israel said the strikes targeted Izz al-Din al-Haddad, Hamas’ military chief in Gaza since the killing of commander Mohammad Sinwar in May 2025. In a joint statement, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defence Minister Israel Katz called Haddad an architect of the Oct 7, 2023 attacks and blamed him for “murder, abduction, and harm” to thousands of Israeli civilians and soldiers, but did not say whether they believed he had been killed or wounded. Hamas did not immediately comment on his fate.
Civilian Deaths In Apartment And Vehicle
Gaza medics reported that at least seven people, including three women and a child, were killed and around 50 injured when an apartment and a passing vehicle were hit. The first strike hit an apartment in the Rimal area of Gaza City, killing at least four people; a second strike moments later destroyed a vehicle on a nearby street, killing three more, according to medical sources.
Scenes Of Destruction And No Warning
Reuters footage showed flames engulfing an apartment in a largely bombed‑out building as Palestinians pulled a body wrapped in white plastic from the rubble. Gaza Civil Defence spokesman Mahmoud Basal said hundreds of people had been living in the targeted building and that the missile was fired “without any pre‑warning or notification,” leaving a significant number of dead and wounded, including families.
Escalation Despite Ceasefire
The strikes come as Israel and Hamas are deadlocked over US President Donald Trump’s post‑war plan for Gaza, and as Israel has intensified attacks over the last five weeks after halting joint bombing with the US in Iran. A US‑brokered ceasefire last October was meant to end two years of major fighting, but efforts to reach a permanent deal on Israeli troop withdrawal, Hamas disarmament and reconstruction have faltered, and Israeli forces still occupy more than half of Gaza’s territory.
Humanitarian Toll And Stalemate
More than two million Palestinians are now squeezed into a small coastal strip, mostly in damaged buildings or makeshift tents where Hamas exerts de facto control. Since the October ceasefire, some 850 Palestinians have been killed in Israeli strikes, according to figures that do not distinguish between civilians and fighters, while militants have killed four Israeli soldiers in the same period. Hamas does not disclose its own combat losses, and the latest attempt to decapitate its military leadership highlights how far a durable political settlement remains.
The bid to kill Izz al-Din al-Haddad, whether successful or not, has once again left Palestinian civilians dead and underscored how tenuous Gaza’s ceasefire is when targeted killings and tit‑for‑tat attacks continue. For Indonesians and Singaporeans observing from afar, the episode reinforces how unresolved political issues and stalled peace plans translate into repeated trauma for families on the ground, and why sustained diplomatic pressure to protect civilians and restart meaningful negotiations is essential.
Sources: Straits Times (2026) , Reuters (2026)
Keywords: Izz Al-Din Al-Haddad, Rimal Gaza City, Targeted Killing, Trump Post War Plan, Palestinian Death Toll
