An Israeli drone strike killed Colonel Jamal Abu Kamil, the head of Gaza City’s civil police force, on Thursday, according to Gaza’s Ministry of Interior. The strike hit his vehicle with three missiles on al-Rashid Street, southwest of Gaza City, and injured two other people.
A separate Israeli strike on a motorbike in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, killed Huthaifa Kawari and critically wounded another person, according to Nasser Hospital. Israel said both strikes targeted Hamas commanders, but did not provide evidence for the claims.
What the authorities said about Abu Kamil’s death
Gaza’s Ministry of Interior said Abu Kamil, 43, was “assassinated” in the strike. Gaza’s police force rejected Israel’s claim that he was a Hamas commander, saying he was committed to his police duties and had no connection to other activities.
The Israeli military said it targeted Abu Kamil to “remove a threat”. Hamas condemned the killing, describing it as part of what it called Israel’s attacks against Palestinians and accusing Israel of trying to spread chaos and lawlessness in Gaza. These characterisations could not be independently resolved from the supplied material.
Related coverage: ‘Green Rafah’ plan advances amid Gaza future dispute.
How the strikes resumed
The latest deaths came a day after Israel resumed air raids following a pause of more than a week. On Wednesday, an Israeli air strike on a vehicle in Beit Lahiya killed a municipal worker and wounded five others, according to the supplied report.
The pause began after Israel’s last reported air strike on August 3 and followed pressure from the United States. It did not end deadly ground attacks. Gaza’s Ministry of Health says near-daily Israeli attacks since the ceasefire took effect on October 10, 2025, have killed more than 1,250 Palestinians.
The unresolved Gaza peace plan
US President Donald Trump announced in the previous month that Israel and Hamas had agreed to a 15-point plan under which Israeli forces would withdraw and Hamas would disarm. The plan is to be implemented by the Gaza Board of Peace.
Hamas said it accepted the deal to avoid a return to full-scale war but made implementation conditional on Israel first withdrawing its forces and halting attacks. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu rejected the agreement on Sunday and said Israeli forces would not withdraw until Hamas was “genuinely disarmed”. Air strikes resumed three days later.
Calls for implementation
Palestine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates called for the US-backed Gaza Peace Plan to be implemented on Thursday. It also condemned attacks by Israeli forces against Palestinians returning to Gaza and continued settler attacks in the occupied West Bank.
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