Jerusalem: The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) said on Friday it had eliminated the leader of the Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, Muhammad Abdullah, in an airstrike on a refugee camp near the city of Tulkarm in the West Bank.
“During joint IDF and the ISA [Israeli air force] counterterrorism activity yesterday (Thursday), an IAF aircraft struck in the area of Tulkarm and eliminated Muhammad Abdullah, head of the Islamic Jihad’s terror network in Nur Shams. Alongside him, an additional terrorist was eliminated,” the IDF said on Telegram.
Abdullah was the successor of Muhammad Jabber, also known as Abu Shujaa, who was the movement’s head in Tulkarm and was eliminated by the Israeli forces on August 29, the IDF also said.
“In recent months, Abdullah was responsible for organising terrorist activities in the area and was involved in numerous terror attacks. He was also active in deploying explosives against IDF soldiers operating in the area of Tulkarm,” the IDF added.
On October 7, 2023, Israel was subjected to an unprecedented rocket attack from the Gaza Strip. In addition, fighters of Palestinian movement Hamas infiltrated the border areas, opened fire on the military and civilians and took hostages. Israeli authorities say that about 1,200 people were killed during the raid. The IDF launched Operation Iron Swords in the Gaza Strip and announced a complete blockade of the enclave. The death toll from Israeli strikes on the Gaza Strip since October 7 has exceeded 42,000, according to the latest data from the enclave’s health ministry.
