A Hamas terrorist who infiltrated Israel on October 7, held hostage Omer Shem Tov, and was captured on video directing Shem Tov to kiss him during a forced release ceremony, was killed in a recent IDF strike in the Gaza Strip, the military confirms. The strike follows the elimination of a third Hamas operative tied to the hostage holding, as The Zioneer reported yesterday.
Tonight, Mon 20:42 Jerusalem, the IDF confirmed the elimination of a Hamas terrorist who held hostage Omer Shem Tov and was captured on video directing Shem Tov to kiss him during a forced release ceremony in December 2024. The strike—the fourth in a targeted campaign—kills the operative who personally humiliated Shem Tov in a staged scene that circulated widely.
The thread began Mon 17:30 Jerusalem with initial reports of a Nukhba terrorist eliminated who participated in Shem Tov's release ceremony. By that same timestamp, The Zioneer reported the IDF and Shin Bet had publicly confirmed the kill and identified the operative as Saba'i Abu Hasna. Over the next two hours, corroboration broadened: the military disclosed that the same strike also killed Ahmed Washah, an Al Jazeera photojournalist serving as a Hamas sniper, and that a separate strike killed three additional armed Hamas operatives. The Zioneer's Sunday 10:07 archive, labeled BACKGROUND, had earlier identified Abu Hasna as a Shadow Unit operative, alongside Washah and a third operative.
As The Zioneer reported on Sunday 04:20 Jerusalem, Abu Hasna was identified as the operative who forced Shem Tov to kiss him. The current campaign against Hamas operatives tied to hostage-holding has now killed at least three operatives confirmed as involved: Abu Hasna, Washah, and a third operative killed in a separate central Gaza strike by Sunday. The military continues to target Nukhba and Shadow Unit cells responsible for the October 7 infiltration and hostage crisis.
The IDF provided no additional details tonight—neither the specific time nor the location of the latest strike. The identities of any other operatives killed alongside the target, if any, were not disclosed. The footage of the forced kiss, which The Zioneer has previously noted, remains a key identifier for the eliminated operative, but the military has not released a name for tonight's target.
6 developments
- DevelopingIDF strike kills third Hamas operative tied to hostage holding, security source says
- StrongIDF eliminates a terrorist in UAV strike in northern Gaza
- DevelopingTerrorist involved in Oct. 7 massacre and hostage-taking eliminated in Gaza, report says
- DevelopingIDF strike kills Hamas cell leader in southern Gaza; 8 reported dead in tent camp attack
Source and signal
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