IDF Claims Hamas Commanders Targeted In Khan Younis Strike

An overnight strike on a humanitarian area in Khan Younis, Gaza, by the Israeli military has garnered significant attention amid a lengthy stall in efforts to reach a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas. Earlier reports claimed that up to 40 civilians were killed in the designated safe zone in the southern Gazan city.

• The Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) claim that it hit 'a number of senior Hamas terrorists' that were operating out of a command centre located inside the humanitarian zone. According to the IDF the commanders targeted were directly involved in the 7 October attacks. The IDF also claims that the casualty figures published by the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza 'do not align' with their own info.
• The strike on Khan Younis comes at a time when a ceasefire deal appears to be moving further out of reach. WaPo reported on 8 Sep that following new Hamas demands on prisoner releases the deal is "on life support", and that " U.S. officials say they are reassessing next steps after they initially hoped to present the two sides with a “take it or leave it” proposal in the coming days."
• US President Joe Biden is set to convene his National Security Council to discuss how to arrest the backward momentum on the ceasefire deal. It is not only Hamas that has altered the stage for a deal, with PM Benjamin Netanyahu's demands on keeping IDF troops in the Philadelphi corridor also seen as an impediment to a ceasefire.