Rakaba allegedly commanded the Hamas militants who infiltrated Israel on paragliders, according to the Israel military. He was also behind the drone attacks on IDF posts, claimed the Israel security force.

Tel Aviv: The Israel Defence Forces (IDF) on Saturday announced that aerial operations head of terror outfit Hamas has been killed. The military said Abu Rukbeh was responsible for managing the terror group’s drones, unmanned aerial vehicles, paragliders, aerial detection systems, and air defenses. The IDF added that he played a role in the planning and execution of the October 7 onslaught by Hamas by directing the terrorists who entered southern Israel on paragliders, as well as the drone attacks on Israel Defense Forces observation posts.

Overnight, IDF fighter jets struck Asem Abu Rakaba, the Head of Hamas’ Aerial Array.

Abu Rakaba was responsible for Hamas’ UAVs, drones, paragliders, aerial detection and defense.

He took part in planning the October 7 massacre and commanded the terrorists who infiltrated…

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) October 28, 2023

On October 14, the IDF announced that it had struck and killed the previous head of Hamas’s aerial forces, Murad Abu Murad. “Last night, IAF fighter jets conducted wide-scale strikes throughout the Gaza Strip. These included dozens of Hamas terror targets as well as ‘Nukhba’ terrorist operatives that were in a staging ground in the Gaza Strip,” the Israeli Air Force had posted on X.Abu Murad allegedly directed Hamas attackers who crossed the Israeli border from the air on hang gliders on October 7, according to The Times of Israel.

On October 7, Hamas fired a barrage of rockets in Israel and its fighters invaded the southern cities and towns while killing and injuring hundreds of Israeli soldiers and civilians. Apart from this, the Palestinian Hamas militants also took dozens of civilians as hostages. Following the attacks, Israel declared a state of war against Hamas, which was followed by a directive from the defence minister to the force to carry out a ‘complete siege’ of Gaza.

Who was Asem Abu Rakaba?

Asem Abu Rakaba, the head of Hamas’s aerial array, was responsible for the Gaza-based militant group’s unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), drones, paragliders, aerial detection and defence, according to the IDF.

Rakaba allegedly commanded the Hamas militants who infiltrated Israel on paragliders, according to the Israel military. He was also behind the drone attacks on IDF posts, claimed the Israel security force.

”He took part in planning the October 7 massacre and commanded the terrorists who infiltrated Israel on paragliders and was responsible for the drone attacks on IDF posts.

Israeli military expends ground forces in Gaza

Meanwhile, the Israeli military said its ground forces are expanding their activities in Gaza. The development also came after communication services in the Gaza Strip were cut, following a heavy round of Israeli airstrikes that lit up the night sky over the darkened territory.

The Israel Defense Forces said its fighter jets attacked around 150 underground sites in the northern Gaza Strip which belong to the Hamas group. It added that several Hamas terrorists were killed in the overnight attack.

Combat tunnels, underground combat spaces and other underground terrorist infrastructures were destroyed, it added.