Israeli operation kills senior Hamas leader, White House confirms

"The rest of of the top leaders are in hiding, likely deep in the Hamas tunnel network and justice will come for them, too, and we are helping to ensure that," Sullivan said.

By Ben Whedon

Published: March 18, 2024 6:44pm

White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan on Monday confirmed that a recent Israeli operation had eliminated a senior leader of Hamas amid the ongoing hostilities in the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) invaded the small coastal region in the wake of an Oct. 7 attack that saw Hamas forces seize roughly 200 prisoners and kill about 1,200 civilians.

"Israel has made significant progress against Hamas," Sullivan told reporters. "They've broken a significant number of Hamas battalions, killed thousands of Hamas fighters, including senior commanders. Hamas's number three, Marwan Issa, was killed in an Israeli operation last week."

"The rest of of the top leaders are in hiding, likely deep in the Hamas tunnel network and justice will come for them, too, and we are helping to ensure that," he went on.

Sullivan then went on to lament the civilian death toll in Gaza amid the invasion, saying "[a] humanitarian crisis has descended across Gaza."

He also discussed President Joe Biden's recent call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, highlighting that Biden had warned him against an attack on Rafah, a critical entry point into Gaza from Egypt to which roughly 1 million refugees have fled.

"Israel has not presented us or the world with a plan for how or where they would safely move those civilians, let alone feed and house them and ensure access to basic things like sanitation," he went on.

Last week, Netanyahu signaled he would mount an operation against Rafah, defying prior warnings from the U.S. administration.

Ben Whedon is an editor and reporter for Just the News. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter.