The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced Friday that it had killed Mohammed al-Jabari, the deputy head of weapons manufacturing for the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, an Iran-backed terror group fighting alongside Hamas.
In a joint statement, the IDF and Israel Security Agency (ISA, or Shin Bet, or Shabak) said:
During a targeted, intelligence-based operation, the IDF eliminated the terrorist Mohammed al-Jabari, who was deputy head of weapons manufacturing for the Islamic Jihad. Al-Jabari was responsible for financing weapons manufacturing infrastructure for the Islamic Jihad in northern Gaza, the distribution of salaries and funds, and was part of attempts to restore the Islamic Jihad’s rocket manufacturing capabilities and infrastructure.
Prior to the strike, numerous steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, surveillance, and additional intelligence.
Moreover, troops of the 162nd Division are continuing precise, intelligence-based operational activities in the area of Rafah. Over the past day, IDF troops eliminated approximately 30 terrorists during close-quarters encounters and in aerial strikes.
Furthermore, troops of the 16th Brigade began operational activities in central Gaza under the command of the 252nd Division. The troops identified a terrorist cell exiting a terror tunnel in order to attack IDF forces. Shortly following the identification, the IAF eliminated the terrorists. In addition, the IAF struck a structure in which numerous explosive devices and weapons were stored.
The strike marks the third major terrorist target eliminated within the past several days, after Hezbollah second-in-command Fuad Shukr, and Hamas political chief Ismail Haniyeh (for which Israel has not yet taken responsibiliy).
Joel B. Pollak is Senior Editor-at-Large at Breitbart News and the host of Breitbart News Sunday on Sirius XM Patriot on Sunday evenings from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET (4 p.m. to 7 p.m. PT). He is the author of “”The Agenda: What Trump Should Do in His First 100 Days,” available for pre-order on Amazon. He is also the author of “The Trumpian Virtues: The Lessons and Legacy of Donald Trump’s Presidency,” now available on Audible. He is a winner of the 2018 Robert Novak Journalism Alumni Fellowship. Follow him on Twitter at @joelpollak.
