IDF: Two senior Hamas members killed over past week

The Israeli military has killed two senior Hamas officials over the past week, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said on Thursday.

The IDF identified one as Hassan Abu Kuik, alleged to have carried out numerous attacks on Israel. He headed internal security operations for the Palestinian militant Hamas movement in the central Gaza Strip, the IDF said. The other was a team leader of Hamas's military intelligence, the military added.

Israeli troops were continuing operations in the headquarters of UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), the IDF said.

Weapons had been found there on Wednesday, the Israeli army said. The IDF accused members of Hamas and of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) of using the UNRWA headquarters for terrorist purposes. The IDF information could not be independently verified.

UNRWA staff have not been using the HQ for normal operations since the start of the war.

Separately, the IDF reported rockets being fired at Israel from around Rafah in the far south of the Gaza Strip during the morning, with several downed by Israeli air defences. The Israeli air force struck those responsible and killed them, it said.

According to the Hamas-controlled health authorities, more than 38,000 people have been killed and more than 88,000 have been injured in Gaza since the start of the war, which erupted following the October 7 attacks mounted on Israel from the region. The figures do not distinguish between combatants and civilians.