War Minister Israel Katz has threatened to assassinate Hamas leaders living abroad, saying they are in Israel's "crosshairs" and vowing that none of those responsible for October 7 will be allowed to die peacefully.
"The Hamas leaders abroad are also in the crosshairs," Katz said in a video statement, issued after Israel assassinated Izz al-Din al-Bik, the commander of Hamas's Northern Gaza Brigade, in an airstrike on Gaza City on Tuesday. "None of these despicable murderers, who played a central role in the October 7 massacre, may be allowed to die peacefully."
In his most pointed warning, Katz directly referenced Israel's assassination attempt on Hamas leaders in Qatar, which he said failed due to a technical malfunction. "Once they escaped due to a malfunction," he said. "But the next time will come, and they too will be sent to the depths of hell."
The threat is a direct signal that Israel intends to repeat its Qatar assassination attempt, which targeted senior Hamas political leaders based in Doha, a country that serves as one of the primary mediators in the Gaza ceasefire negotiations. Qatar hosts Hamas's political bureau and has been central to every round of ceasefire talks since October 2023. Threatening to assassinate Hamas figures there is also a threat to the mediation framework itself, sending the message that Israel is willing to strike inside an allied state to kill the people it is simultaneously negotiating with.
Al-Bik is the third Hamas brigade commander killed by Israel in recent weeks, alongside the commander of Hamas's North Gaza brigade Mohannad Abu Foul, killed in a separate airstrike on the same day. Israel has also assassinated Mohammed al-Yazouri, the Khan Younis Brigade commander, and Faraj Hamad, a freed Palestinian prisoner, in recent days. The killing spree comes as Israel continues to violate the ceasefire that has been ostensibly in force since October 2025.
