Israeli Strike Kills Hamas Rafah Brigade Commander Samir Abu Younis in Khan Younis

Israel's military killed Samir Abu Younis, commander of Hamas's Rafah Brigade, in a drone strike in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, and Hamas confirmed his death early Sunday. He is the second Rafah Brigade chief killed in two months, and the strike came during a ceasefire that took effect October 11, 2025.

The Israeli military and the Shin Bet said in a joint statement that they had hit a senior Hamas military commander on Saturday. Hamas said hours later that the target was a senior member of its military wing. Medical personnel said the strike, in the al-Mawasi area, hit a tent sheltering displaced people and wounded two others, who were taken to Nasser Medical Complex. Gaza's Ministry of Health said Israeli attacks killed 16 people and injured 68 in the previous 48 hours. It also said that since the ceasefire began, Israel has killed at least 1,643 Palestinians and injured 5,964.

Newsmax, the right-leaning outlet, folds the killing into a Mideast news roundup alongside Jordan's sentencing of three people in a church attack and an Iranian Revolutionary Guard claim of a strike on a radar. It describes a top commander killed in an overnight airstrike, as Israel said Sunday, and gives no name, casualty figures or ceasefire context. The Times of Israel and Al Jazeera, both alternative outlets, name Abu Younis and confirm Hamas's acknowledgment. The Times of Israel says he was struck walking down a street and notes his predecessor's death. Al Jazeera stresses the tent, the wounded, verified hospital video, and Israel's repeated attacks on al-Mawasi despite its earlier humanitarian-zone designation. Left-leaning outlets had not reported the story at the time of writing.