Sabai Zaher Abd al-Hamid Abu Hasna, a Hamas Nukhba Force operative who infiltrated Israel on October 7 and later held hostage Omer Shem Tov, was killed in an IDF airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip over the weekend, the military says. The strike came after Abu Hasna planted explosive devices and advanced further attacks.
The IDF confirmed on Tuesday that Sabai Abu Hasna, a Hamas Nukhba Force operative, was killed in a precision airstrike in the northern Gaza Strip over the weekend. According to the military, Abu Hasna infiltrated Israel on October 7, 2023, took part in holding hostage Omer Shem Tov — abducted from the Supernova music festival — and was later involved in planting explosive devices and advancing additional terrorist attacks. The announcement, arriving at 17:30 Jerusalem on Monday, identified the operative as Sabai Zaher Abd al-Hamid Abu Hasna, naming him for the first time in this update.
Abu Hasna is the third Hamas operative tied to the holding of Shem Tov to be eliminated in recent days. The Zioneer reported that two other operatives — members of Hamas's Shadow Unit who appeared in the staged release ceremony — were killed in a previous strike in the central Gaza Strip on June 21. Shem Tov was released on February 22, 2025, after 505 days in captivity. The IDF's announcement did not specify the exact timing of the weekend strike, and no independent confirmation of the target's death has been released.
As The Zioneer reported on June 21 and June 22, Abu Hasna had been filmed forcing Shem Tov to kiss him during a staged Hamas release ceremony, and the strike also killed Ahmed Washah, a Hamas operative who worked as a photojournalist for Al Jazeera and served as a sniper. Three other armed Hamas operatives were killed in a separate strike, the military said.
The IDF has not specified when exactly over the weekend the strike occurred, and no independent verification of the target's death or of the additional fatalities has been published.
6 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
- StrongIDF eliminates a terrorist in UAV strike in northern Gaza
- DevelopingIDF eliminates senior Hamas operative in southern Gaza
Source and signal
- Internal intake