The IDF and Shin Bet eliminated Saba’i Zuhair Abd al-Hamid Abu Hasna, a Hamas Nukhba terrorist who took part in holding hostage Omer Shem Tov and infiltrated Israel on October 7, the military said. Abu Hasna was struck in northern Gaza over the weekend and had recently attempted to advance attacks against IDF forces.
The IDF and Shin Bet on Monday evening officially confirmed the elimination of Saba’i Zuhair Abd al-Hamid Abu Hasna, a Hamas Nukhba operative who participated in holding hostage Omer Shem Tov and infiltrated Israel on October 7. The military said the strike was carried out in the northern Gaza Strip over the weekend (Saturday). Abu Hasna had been involved in planting explosives and recently attempted to advance attacks against IDF forces.
This confirmation adds official, on-record detail to a thread The Zioneer has been tracking since Sunday. At 04:20 Jerusalem on Sunday, The Zioneer first reported (citing a security source) that an IDF strike in central Gaza had killed a Hamas 'Shadow Unit' operative tied to hostage holding, identified as Saba'ai Abu Hasna. By 10:07 Sunday, The Zioneer reported that a security source identified two additional Hamas operatives — Ahmed Washah and Abd al-Rahman Abu Gharkud — eliminated in the same strike. Monday evening at 17:30 Jerusalem, the IDF issued a series of increasingly specific statements: an initial confirmation of three Hamas operatives killed, then a naming of Abu Hasna as a Nukhba operative, and finally the confirmation that he held Shem Tov. The thread shows corroboration evolving from anonymous sources to an on-record military statement with precise location and timing.
The Zioneer also reported Monday at 12:15 Jerusalem the elimination of another Nukhba commander, Zaki Youssef Mahmoud Abu Mustafa, who participated in the abduction of Yagil Yaakov on October 7 — part of the broader, ongoing campaign against Nukhba operatives. Additionally, The Zioneer reported Sunday evening that the strike that killed Abu Hasna also eliminated Ahmed Washah and Abd al-Rahman Abu Gharkud; Abu Hasna had appeared in the Hamas-release ceremony for Omer Shem Tov, forcing him to kiss his head.
No further details have been released about the specific intelligence that led to the strike, and the IDF has not commented on whether any other operatives remain at large in connection with Shem Tov's captivity.
4 developments
- DevelopingIDF strike kills third Hamas operative tied to hostage holding, security source says
- StrongIDF confirms elimination of second Nukhba commander who abducted Yagil Yaakov on October 7
- DevelopingIDF eliminates senior Hamas commander involved in October 7 infiltration at Kisufim
- DevelopingIDF eliminates senior Hamas operative in southern Gaza
Source and signal
- Internal intake