Brigades, the militant group said Thursday.
The three members of the
Brigades' 15-member military council were killed in a bombing in Rafah
in southern Gaza, according to Hamas.
The announcement of their
deaths come the day after Hamas said an Israeli strike had killed the
wife and 7-month-old son of Mohammed Deif, the head of the military
wing. The strike failed to kill Deif, Hamas said.
Role in capture of Israeli soldier
The militant group, which
controls Gaza, said the leaders killed overnight were Mohammed Abu
Shamala, Raed al-Attar and Mohammed Barhoum.
Hamas vowed revenge for their deaths.
"The assassination of the
Qassam leaders is a great Israeli crime that will not succeed in
breaking the will of our people or even weaken the resistance, and
Israel will pay the price," spokesman Abu Zuhri said.
Al-Attar, the commander of the Qassam Brigades in Rafah, is believed to be the most senior of the three.
The Israeli military said
it had confirmed that it had killed al-Attar and Abu Shamala,
describing them as "high-ranking Hamas commanders responsible for major
terror attacks against Israelis."
Al-Attar played a "major
role" in the capture of the Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2006, the
Israel Defense Forces said on its Twitter account. Shalit was held
captive until a deal was struck for his release in 2011 in exchange for
more than 1,000 Palestinian prisoners.
"This morning's strike
sends a clear message to those responsible for planning attacks," IDF
spokesman Lt. Col. Peter Lerner said in a statement. "We will strike
those that have terrorized our communities, towns and cities, we will
pursue the perpetrators of abduction of our soldiers and teenagers, and
we will succeed in restoring security to the State of Israel."
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