Following a special operation involving an armed clash and subsequent airstrikes… arrest of a Hamas security official in Gaza
A special unit arrived in a small white vehicle covered along its sides in the Al-Katiba area, west of Gaza City, before the situation escalated into a deadly confrontation.
The people inside the vehicle opened fire on a group of Palestinians, followed by an intense exchange of gunfire between the two sides.
Shortly after the white vehicle left the area, a series of explosions rang out following Israeli airstrikes that killed three Palestinians and wounded several others.
According to Israeli reports, the operation was carried out by armed militias, while the Israeli military subsequently intervened from the air after the operation was exposed.
Yedioth Ahronoth reported: “According to Israeli officials, the operation was carried out under the command of the Southern Command by local militias operating around Gaza City. No Israeli military ground forces participated in the operation.”
The newspaper added: “During the mission, which lasted several hours, the Israeli military carried out several airstrikes using Zik drones against threats facing the forces, which were neutralized. Ultimately, the target was captured and transferred to Israel while injured, where he is receiving medical treatment.”
Israeli Channel 15 reported: “An Israeli source said that the senior official arrested in Gaza was the head of Hamas’s General Security Service, a position equivalent to the head of Israel’s Shin Bet security agency.”
Later, the Israeli Broadcasting Authority revealed his identity, saying that his name was Moein Al-Arabid and that he was a senior internal security official within Hamas.
It added: “He is the head of the General Security Service, which was responsible for protecting senior figures in Hamas’s political wing inside the Gaza Strip.”
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said in a statement: “A senior Hamas leader was arrested a short while ago. This is our policy: we do not wait for threats to emerge; we pursue Hamas, expose them, and destroy their terrorist infrastructure. Any attack from Gaza will be met with a strong and decisive response. The test will not be in their attacks, but in our response, and it will be severe.”
Katz did not identify the arrested leader by name.
Meanwhile, Ismail Al-Thawabta, director of the Government Media Office in Gaza, said in a statement: “A special force belonging to the Israeli occupation attempted to carry out a security operation in Gaza City. However, the force was exposed while carrying out its mission, prompting the occupation to intervene from the air using more than 10 different fighter aircraft, which launched a series of intensive and violent airstrikes in the area. The strikes resulted in the deaths of several people and wounded others, in addition to killing several members of the special force that had attempted to carry out the operation.”
For its part, the Israeli military said in a statement: “The military attacked several targets in the Gaza Strip area in order to eliminate threats to the security forces.”
It added: “No members of our forces were injured.”
