The IDF on Wednesday reported that Muhammad Naif Abu Shamala, commander of a company in Hamas’s elite Nukhba unit, was eliminated on August 13 in southern Khan Younis. The operation targeted the operative nearly 22 months after his involvement in the October 7 massacre and an attempted raid on the Ma’aras outpost in the Gaza border region.
“During the war, and as part of his role in the Hamas terrorist organization, he advanced numerous terror attacks against IDF troops and the State of Israel. The IDF and ISA will continue to operate against the terrorists who took part in the brutal October 7th massacre,” the military said in a statement.
On Tuesday, the IDF and Shin Bet revealed they eliminated Jihad Kamal Salem Najjar, a Hamas military wing member involved in the abduction of former hostage Yarden Bibas, in central Gaza on August 10, early last week. Najjar participated in the attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz on October 7, 2023.
“I got a little bit of closure today. Thank you to the IDF, Shin Bet and all involved in eliminating one of the terrorists who abducted me on October 7,” Bibas said. “Because of you, he can’t harm anyone else. I await the full closure with the return of my friends David, Ariel and the other 48 hostages.”