IDF says strike on Gaza hospital compound killed Hamas commander

An Israeli strike within the compound of a Gaza Strip hospital Saturday killed a Hamas commander who was planning attacks on IDF troops and civilians, the military said, while the coastal territory's health officials reported Israeli strikes elsewhere killed three people.

The IDF said the commander, who it did not immediately name, was targeted in a strike in the Deir al-Balah area, while "hiding adjacent to Shuhada al-Aqsa Hospital."

The hospital reported that three people were injured in an Israeli strike near a warehouse close to the maternity ward inside the medical facility. The military said that it took steps to mitigate harm to civilians in the area.

"This is another example of Hamas's cynical use of humanitarian infrastructure and Hamas's systematic embedding within medical facilities to advance and carry out terror activity," the military said.

The IDF said the Hamas commander recently was advancing attacks on troops and Israeli civilians, as well as acting to restore the capabilities of the terror group, "while systematically violating the ceasefire."

"The strike was carried out to remove the threat," the army added.

Earlier in the day, Al-Aqsa Hospital reported one person was killed by Israeli fire in the eastern area of the city. The IDF said it was checking the reports.

In Gaza City, the civil defense agency, which operates as a rescue force under Hamas, said an Israeli strike near a roundabout in the Tel al-Hawa neighborhood killed two people and injured several others.

The military said it struck a "military operative" in the area.

The IDF also announced that a strike it carried out on Friday in northern Gaza killed a Hamas commander and a sniper in the terror group.

According to the IDF, the strike killed Hani Abd al-Hai Fakhri Mazloum, a company commander in Hamas's elite Nukhba Force, and Hassan Zidan Hassan Deiri, a Hamas sniper.

Both terror operatives were also involved in "trafficking and supply of weapons to Hamas terrorists," the military said.

The IDF justified the strike amid the ceasefire by saying that both operatives had been advancing attacks on troops and civilians, as well as trying to restore Hamas capabilities, "all in violation of the ceasefire agreement."

The strike was carried out to "remove the threat," the military added.

The latest Israeli strikes on Gaza come as the international community attempts to implement a US-backed plan for ending the Gaza conflict. The plan calls for Hamas to disarm in exchange for a gradual Israeli withdrawal from the Strip, but progress has remained stalled.

Hamas has said it accepts the proposal, but Netanyahu has rejected withdrawing the IDF until Hamas fully gives up its weapons.

Israel has accused Hamas of tightening its grip on Gaza's civilian population as it seeks to retain control of the enclave.