Hamas says military chief survived Israeli strike
An Israeli bombing failed to hit its intended target, military commander Mohammed Deif, but killed at least 90 Palestinians


What happened
Hamas said Sunday that an Israeli airstrike Saturday had failed to kill its intended target, top military commander Mohammed Deif. Gaza health officials said the bombing killed at least 90 Palestinians and wounded more than 300 others in Mawasi, an area Israel had designated a safe "humanitarian area." Israel said the attack had killed Deif's lieutenant Rafa Salama.
Who said what
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Saturday there was "no absolute certainty" that Deif was among the dead, "but one way or another, we will reach every senior member of Hamas." Hamas claimed Israel had invented the targeting of top militants to "cover up the scale of the horrific massacre."
The bombings "again raised questions about the number of civilian casualties Israel was willing to tolerate in pursuit of its military goals in the Gaza Strip," The Washington Post said. U.N. official Scott Anderson said he witnessed "horrific scenes" in a Gaza hospital after the strike, including "toddlers who are double amputees" and "children paralyzed and unable to receive treatment."
What next?
Hamas said there was "no doubt that the horrific massacres will impact any efforts" to reach a cease-fire deal with Israel, but "efforts and endeavors of the mediators remain ongoing."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
Israel: Losing the American public
Feature A recent poll finds American support for Israel's military action in Gaza has fallen from 50% to 32%
-
Unmaking Americans
Feature Trump is threatening to revoke the citizenship of foreign-born Americans. Could he do that?
-
EPA: A bonfire of climate change regulations
Feature The Environmental Protection Agency wants to roll back its 'endangerment finding,' a ruling that lets the agency regulate carbon emissions
-
Israel: Losing the American public
Feature A recent poll finds American support for Israel's military action in Gaza has fallen from 50% to 32%
-
Trump sends FBI to patrol DC, despite falling crime
Speed Read Washington, D.C., 'has become one of the most dangerous cities anywhere in the world,' Trump said
-
What does occupying Gaza accomplish for Israel?
Talking Points Risking a 'strategic dead-end' in the fight against Hamas
-
Trump officials reinstating 2 Confederate monuments
Speed Read The administration has plans to 'restore Confederate names and symbols' discarded in the wake of George Floyd's 2020 murder
-
Trump nominates Powell critic for vacant Fed seat
speed read Stephen Miran, the chair of Trump's Council of Economic Advisers and a fellow critic of Fed chair Jerome Powell, has been nominated to fill a seat on the Federal Reserve Board of Governors
-
Who owns Gaza? Israel's occupation plans
The Explainer Egypt, Israel and Britain have ruled the beleaguered territory
-
ICE scraps age limits amid hiring push
Speed Read Anyone 18 or older can now apply to be an ICE agent
-
Trump's global tariffs take effect, with new additions
Speed Read Tariffs on more than 90 US trading partners went into effect, escalating the global trade war