Ghost of al-Kasam: Who is Ezedin al-Hadd? Meet the third Gaza chief of Hamas in seven months. world News
Gaza’s war-conductor is a new face of the command in the labyrinth. His name is Ezedin al-Hadd-and most people never heard about him.More than 600 days of the war, and after the death of both Yahya and Mohammad Sivar, Hamas quietly handed over his Gaza operation to a shady experienced commander, known as The Ghost of al-Kasam. At the age of 55, Azedin al-Hadad is not a stranger, nor to survive. With the weight of a $ 750,000 Israeli reward on his head and the weight of a fiery militant empire on his shoulders, Hadad stepped into just seven months as Hamas’s third Gaza chief.
Above tunnels
An experienced field commander and strategy, Hadad, played an important role in planning the devastating attacks of October 7, 2023, which instigated the current war. According to Arabs and Israeli officials, they have also oversee the recruitment of new fighters and took personal responsibility for the Israeli hostages held in Gaza – making their pictures on their phone, even some captivating some captivating with something directly in captivity.But he did not reach the top through a hot election contesting elections. The war has reduced the top rank of Hamas. Of the 18 senior figures of the group’s military council before the war, only some are still considered alive. Mohammad Sinavar, the immediate predecessor and younger brother of Yahya, were killed during an Israeli strike under the European Hospital of Khan Younis in May. Hadad survived – and took over.
A ghost with a memory and a complaint
Unlike the fiery Sinavar brothers, Hadad is known for its silence and shady conduct. His surname, al-Kasam’s ghost, refers to a career defined by theft and low visibility. He has survived many Israeli attempts, but not without personal loss: both his sons have been killed in the current struggle.A former hostage who met Haddad five times during captivity described them as cool, cool and Hebrew speaking. On one occasion, Hadad also ordered that a book left behind by a hostage should be returned to him. But there is also mood in the ghost. In the latter meetings, he became rigid and more bitter – who coincided with his son’s death.
A less but not defeated Hamas
While Israel has claimed that 20,000 of Hamas’s 35,000 fighters have been killed and most of its weapons reserves have been destroyed, the group remains the major armed forces of Gaza. Its ranks have been replicated – at least numerically – thousands of young recruitments along with a letter or crash courses in an ambush strategy.Israeli and Arab intelligence sources estimate that Hamas now orders around 25,000 fighters, although many are poorly trained and low-ease. The financial reserves of the group have also decreased. Once the tax is flushed with income from income from assistance and smuggling, Hamas is allegedly struggling to pay his fighters. According to an internal document found by the Israeli Army, Hamas reduced its military wing by 25% in early 2024 by early 2024.Nevertheless, the organization has maintained one of its most powerful strategic benefits: its underground network. Israeli military sources admitted that Hamas’s 75% remains over than 75% of the tunnels. And as shown in the number of Israeli casualties recently, the group has been converting to unexpected ordnance into meakshift bombs, capable of ambushing a well -bear patrol.
Is a fighter ready to talk?
Despite its militant past, Hadad is reportedly more practical than its predecessors. Arab intelligence officials say they pushed for the hostage-prone swaps of January 2024 and urged them to be further released to expand the ceasefire, which eventually broke in March. He has also shown temporary openness to discuss the disarmament of Hamas – some Sinavar brothers strongly rejected.But there are limitations of practicality. Hadad still insists that no other hostage will be released without full Israeli return and the end of the war. Their motivations, officials believe, is operated by strategic calculations in the form of ideology: Hamas Gaza is the only coherent armed authority, but it is bleeding fighters, wealth and region.
what comes next?
Israel aims to control 75% of Gaza by the end of July. Its current strategy tries to separate Hamas’s grip on the enclave by separating population centers and targeting the remaining leadership. But for every commander killed, another emerges. And while the group can now rely on instantaneous explosives rather than rockets, its ability to provoke daily pain on Israeli forces.As a former Deputy Chief of Israeli Combat Intelligence, Miri Icein, he said: “He does not need tens of thousands of weapons. He just needs to kill a soldier in a day.”What can the bang – or wants to reduce the trajectory of war. He is a commander who is forged in tunnels and blood, undergoes damage, and now facing a military juggling in a fight that exist rapidly. But till now, the ghost has not disappeared.
