Hamas says senior commander killed in airstrike; Israeli military says next step might not be ground incursion

A senior Hamas armed commander was killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza، Hamas’ armed wing Izz el-Deen Al-Qassam Brigades said Tuesday on Telegram.

Nofal was a member of the General Military Council and commander of the Central Brigade in the al-Qassam Brigades، the Palestinian militant group said.

The Israeli military has said that the next steps of its campaign against Palestinian militant group Hamas need not be a long anticipated ground incursion.

“We are preparing for the next stages of war. We haven’t said what they will be. Everybody’s talking about the ground offensive. It might be something different،” a spokesperson said.

Israel is on its 11th day of an aerial bombardment campaign of the Gaza Strip، over which it has ordered a total siege، cutting off water، food and electricity supplies to a population of 2 million people.

The siege، which human rights groups have criticized for breaking humanitarian law، comes in response to a brutal terrorist attack by Hamas on Oct. 7. The death toll from the conflict so far has risen to at least 1،400 people killed in Israel and more than 2،700 people killed in Gaza. The Israeli government says that Hamas is holding at least 199 hostages kidnapped from Israel.

Israel’s Gaza evacuation order could amount to a crime of “forcible transfer” in breach of international law، according to a spokesperson for the U.N. human rights office.

President Joe Biden will visit Israel on Wednesday، Secretary of State Antony Blinken said. “He’s coming here at a critical moment for Israel، for the region and for the world،” Blinken announced during a brief press conference at the U.S. Embassy in Tel Aviv.

The White House has so far fully supported what it says is “Israel’s right to defend itself.”