Israeli Strike Kills Hamas Police Chief in Northern Gaza as Ceasefire Efforts Stall

An Israeli airstrike killed Brigadier-General Abdel-Nasser Al-Maqadma, the Hamas-led police chief and governor of northern Gaza, on Saturday, according to Gaza's Hamas-run interior ministry and local medics. The strike took place in the Sheikh Radwan neighborhood north of Gaza City.

The Israeli military identified Al-Maqadma as a member of Hamas' military wing in addition to his policing role. Israel has repeatedly targeted members of the Hamas-run police force in recent months, alleging many also serve in the group's armed wing and pose security threats to Israeli forces operating in Gaza.

Hamas has rejected those claims, accusing Israel of deliberately targeting civilian policing institutions to create instability and disorder in the Gaza Strip. The group also says the attacks violate the U.S.-brokered ceasefire that took effect in October.

Saturday's violence claimed at least five Palestinian lives, according to medics. In central Gaza's Nuseirat refugee camp, an Israeli strike killed a Palestinian medic, while a police officer wounded in an earlier attack died from his injuries. Israel did not immediately comment on those incidents.

In southern Gaza, two people were killed in an airstrike on a home in Khan Younis. The Israeli military said the operation targeted an Islamic Jihad militant. Later the same day, another strike in Khan Younis killed high school student Khaled Al-Breim. Relatives said he had been preparing to celebrate his graduation and distribute sweets to family and friends before starting university. Israel has not commented on that strike.

Gaza health officials say more than 1,180 Palestinians, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israeli attacks since the October ceasefire began. Hamas has not disclosed its own casualty figures. During the same period, four Israeli soldiers have reportedly been killed by militants in Gaza.

Diplomatic efforts led by Egypt, Qatar, Turkey, and the United States to advance President Donald Trump's Gaza peace proposal have made little progress. The plan calls for Hamas to disarm and for Israeli forces to withdraw from Gaza.

The war began after Hamas-led fighters attacked southern Israel in 2023, killing about 1,200 people and taking roughly 250 hostages, according to Israeli figures. Gaza health officials say Israel's military campaign has since killed more than 73,000 Palestinians. Israel now controls an estimated 64% of Gaza, where nearly two million residents remain displaced and face worsening humanitarian conditions.