Killed by Israel: Who Was Izz al-Din Al-Beik, Commander of Hamas’s North Gaza Brigade?

Israel announced on Tuesday that it had killed Izz al-Din Al-Beik, commander of the northern Gaza Strip brigade within the al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing. His killing followed a prolonged manhunt and several assassination attempts aimed at eliminating him during the war.

Al-Beik assumed command of the North Gaza Brigade after his predecessor, Ahmed al-Ghandour, was killed in November. Al-Ghandour had been one of Hamas’s most prominent military commanders in the Gaza Strip.

Al-Beik was the third brigade commander appointed by Hamas to replace a previous leader to be killed by Israel.

Hamas divides its armed wing into five main brigades: North Gaza, which al-Beik commanded until his death; Gaza City; Central Gaza; Khan Younis; and Rafah. The Rafah Brigade had been led by Nael Abu Obeid, who was recently killed by Israel, just days after the killing of Khan Younis Brigade commander Mohammed al-Yazouri.

Before taking command of the brigade, Al-Beik headed the intelligence division of Hamas’s armed wing in the northern Gaza Strip. The division is considered one of the most important and sensitive units within the al-Qassam Brigades. He assumed leadership of the brigade following al-Ghandour’s killing in the early stages of the war.

His best-known nom de guerre was “Ashmawi”, the coded military alias he chose for himself and by which he remained widely known in northern Gaza for many years.

Taking command of the brigade early in the war placed Al-Beik in charge of three major areas of responsibility. The first concerned the so-called “Generals’ Plan”, which Israel allegedly sought to impose to displace residents of Gaza City and the northern Strip towards central and southern Gaza before completely evacuating the north.

He was also given early responsibility for reorganising the ranks of Hamas’s northern Gaza brigade following a series of significant assassinations and the movement of fighters between the northern and southern parts of the enclave.

The Israeli military said that “Al-Beik was responsible for managing the brigade’s activities and directing its operatives to develop and carry out plans against Israeli army forces”. It also accused him of attempting to rebuild the brigade’s capabilities after it had sustained a severe blow during the war.

Israel had previously attempted to kill Al-Beik in May 2025 by bombing a meeting of senior commanders from Hamas’s armed wing. His associate Imad Islim was killed in the strike, while Al-Beik’s fate initially remained unknown. His survival was subsequently confirmed.