Benjamin Netanyahu Says Israel Nears Elimination of All October 7 Attack Masterminds

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday that Israel was close to achieving one of its main war objectives in Gaza — eliminating those responsible for planning the October 7 attack.

His remarks came after the Israeli military announced that Ezzedine Al-Haddad, a commander in Hamas’s armed wing, was killed in an airstrike in Gaza on Friday.

Following the October 7 assault, Netanyahu had vowed to hunt down and eliminate all those behind the attacks, which killed 1,221 people, according to an AFP count based on official Israeli figures.

“I promised that every architect of the massacre and the hostage-taking would be eliminated, and we are very close to completing that mission,” Netanyahu said during the weekly cabinet meeting, calling Haddad a “despicable terrorist.”

Since the start of the war, Israeli forces and intelligence agencies have targeted Hamas’s top political and military leadership in Gaza and elsewhere in the region.

Israel has claimed responsibility for killing several senior Hamas leaders during the conflict, including former political chief Ismail Haniyeh.

Israeli troops also killed Yahya Sinwar, widely considered one of the key masterminds of the October 7 attack.

Mohammed Deif, the longtime head of Hamas’s armed wing and another alleged architect of the assault, was also killed during the war.

Israeli strikes have further targeted Hamas-linked operatives in Lebanon and senior commanders of the Iran-backed Hezbollah, including former leader Hassan Nasrallah.

Netanyahu also reiterated that Israeli forces currently control around 60 percent of Gaza.

The statement indicates that Israel has continued expanding its military presence in the territory, following reports that troops advanced toward a newly designated “Orange Line.”

Under the US-brokered ceasefire between Israel and Hamas that took effect on October 10, Israeli forces were expected to withdraw to a “Yellow Line,” which still left them in control of more than half of Gaza.

“We have Hamas in our grip. We know exactly what our mission is — to ensure that Gaza will never again pose a threat to Israel,” Netanyahu said.

According to Gaza’s health ministry, which operates under Hamas authority, Israel’s military campaign since October 2023 has killed at least 72,763 people in Gaza, most of them civilians.

Despite the ceasefire, violence has continued in Gaza, with both Israel and Hamas accusing each other of violating the truce.

The Gaza health ministry says at least 871 Palestinians have been killed since the ceasefire began, while the Israeli military says five of its soldiers have died during the same period.