Israeli airstrikes resumed in Gaza on March 18, 2025, resulting in the assassination of key Palestinian government officials, including Issam al-Dalis, Ahmed al-Hatta, Mahmoud Abu Wafta, and Bahjat Abu Sultan.
Two months after the ceasefire agreement in Gaza on January 17, 2025, the Palestinian Resistance Movement Hamas announced the death of several governmental leaders in the Gaza Strip following Israel’s resumption of military operations on March 18, 2025.
The officials killed include: Issam al-Daalis, head of the Government Follow-up Committee; Ahmed al-Hatta, deputy minister of justice in Gaza; Major General Mahmoud Abu Wafteh, deputy minister of the interior; and Major General Bahjat Abu Sultan, director of the Internal Security Service.
Israel resumed its war in several parts of Gaza with a military operation named “Pride and Sword,” claiming it targets Hamas. The attacks resulted in the killing of over 400 Palestinians and left hundreds injured. Hamas held Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu fully responsible for the consequences of the aggression on Gaza.
The Israeli Broadcasting Authority (KAN) reported that the Israeli Air Force launched a wave of attacks across Gaza. It added that Netanyahu and Defense Minister Israel Katz issued orders to the Israeli military to act forcefully against Hamas in Gaza.
Axios news website cited Netanyahu’s office confirming that Israel resumed its military operations in Gaza “after Hamas repeatedly rejected the return of our hostages and refused mediation offers.”
The attacks, which have largely targeted refugees in displacement camps across the Strip, seem to be a response to Hamas’ insistence on adhering to the original ceasefire agreement, signed between the Palestinian Resistance and Israel, and mediated by the US, Egypt, and Qatar.
These are some of the key government figures killed by Israel.
Bahjat Abu Sultan
Bahjat Abu Sultan was the director general of Hamas’ Internal Security Services.
He held various roles within Gaza’s Interior Ministry.
Issam Al-Dalis
Born in 1966 in the Jabaliya refugee camp in the northeastern Gaza Strip, Issam al-Daalis comes from a family ethnically cleansed from the city of Ashdod, which was taken over by Zionist gangs in 1948. He grew up in the Nuseirat camp in central Gaza, married, and had six children.
Al-Dalis worked as an assistant director at the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), where he was also a member of the agency’s staff union and head of the teaching sector. He served as a political advisor to former Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh from 2012 to 2014, and was a member of Hamas’ executive office between 2009 and 2013. He headed the movement’s financial and economic sector and served as vice president of the political bureau of Hamas from 2012 to 2020.
In March 2020, al-Daalis was elected to the political bureau of Hamas in Gaza, and took charge of the media sector. He later stepped down from this role after the Palestinian Legislative Council appointed him head of the Government Follow-up Committee in June 2021.
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Mahmoud Abu Wafta
One of the most prominent figures in Hamas, Mahmoud Abu Wafta played a central role in the organization’s security and political decisions. He served as deputy minister of the interior in Gaza.
Abu Wafta was instrumental in managing security affairs in Gaza, particularly during periods of Israeli military escalation. He oversaw the maintenance of security and order, coordinated security operations within Hamas, and ensured the continuity of daily life for Gaza’s residents, making him a prime target for Israeli forces.
In January 2025, prior to the resumption of Israeli military operations, Abu Wafta toured Gaza’s streets, inspecting the deployment of internal security forces as part of a plan to strengthen security after a 471-day-long war.
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Ahmed al-Hatta
Ahmed Omar al-Hatta, known as “Abu Omar,” obtained a master’s degree in law and served as the dean of the Rabat Police College in Gaza. In December 2021, he was appointed as deputy minister of justice in Gaza, succeeding Judge Mohamed al-Nahal.
Hamas announced al-Hatta’s death alongside several other government leaders due to Israeli airstrikes on Gaza in March 2025. Sources revealed that al-Hatta died with his wife Fatima and children Yasra, Omar, Huda, Hagar, Janan, and Banan.
(PC, AJA, Palestinian Media)
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