Israeli army says two senior Hamas commanders killed in Gaza strikes

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military said Friday that two senior Hamas commanders were killed in separate airstrikes in northern Gaza earlier this week. In a statement released Friday evening, the army identified the first target as Khalil Jamal Khalil Manaa, who it said had been killed on Wednesday in a strike targeting the "production division" of Hamas's military wing. The military said Manaa had managed mortar production workshops throughout the war, coordinated the final stages of manufacturing and played a central role in the division's operations. A second strike on Thursday killed Usama Walid Dib Muharib, whom the army described as a company commander in Hamas's "Nuseirat" battalion. According to the statement, Muharib had recently been preparing explosive ambushes against Israeli troops in Gaza. The military said both men had posed a threat to its forces and were neutralized from the air. It added that units under the Southern Command are continuing to operate and redeploy under the terms of the ceasefire agreement. No further details on the strikes were immediately available.