Israel says it has killed ISIS leader Muhammad Abd al-Aziz Abu Zayda in a Gaza airstrike as its ground assault intensifies.
Israel claims its forces have killed Muhammad Abd al-Aziz Abu Zayda, the highest-ranking ISIS leader in Gaza, during an airstrike in the Al-Bureij area.
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced on social media that “during the past week, the IDF attacked and eliminated using aircraft, led by Southern Command and guided by Military Intelligence, the head of the ‘Palestine’ district in the ISIS terror organization in the Gaza Strip, the terrorist Muhammad Abd al-Aziz Abu Zayda.”
The military described Abu Zayda as responsible for setting policies, planning, and coordinating ISIS operations in Gaza, Sinai, and the West Bank. It added that ISIS had been “raising significant terror funding” and smuggling equipment into Gaza.
The IDF also said its forces eliminated Hezbollah commander Ahmed Na’im Matuk in southern Lebanon earlier on Friday.
The announcement came as Israel intensified its ground offensive in Gaza City, which the United Nations warned “signals a new and dangerous phase” of the conflict.