From the Liveblog of
Monday, March 18, 2024
US confirms Israel killed Hamas no. 3 Marwan Issa
Jacob Magid is The Times of Israel's US bureau chief
US National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan becomes the first government official to confirm reports that Israel killed Hamas’s number three military official, Marwan Issa, in a strike last week.
“The rest of the top leaders are in hiding, likely deep in the Hamas tunnel network, and justice will come for them too. We are helping to ensure that,” Sullivan says in a press briefing.
Yesterday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi said that Hamas was trying to hide the fate of Issa, the deputy commander of the terror group’s military wing after last week’s strike.
Sullivan says US President Joe Biden and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu discussed Israel’s military operations in Gaza during their call earlier today, with the former “emphasiz[ing] his bone-deep commitment to ensuring the long-term security of Israel and [re]-affirm[ing]…that Israel has a right to go after Hamas, the perpetrators of the worst massacre of the Jewish people since the Holocaust.
“Israel has made significant progress against Hamas. They’ve broken a significant number of Hamas battalions and killed thousands of Hamas fighters including senior commanders,” Sullivan adds.
The Times of Israel Community.