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As the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) step up their assault on the Gaza Strip in the wake of the deadliest-ever Palestinian militant assault on Israel, the murky figure at the heart of Hamas’ military wing may be getting ready to make his final stand.
Little is known for certain about Mohammed Deif. That’s by design for Hamas’ Al-Qassam Military Brigades supreme commander, whose nom de guerre means “guest” in an apparent reference to his frequently shifting location. Deif’s elusiveness has allowed him to escape numerous Israeli attempts on his life. But having survived so long, a massive IDF incursion could bring a dramatic end to a bloody game of cat-and-mouse that’s dragged on for more than three decades.
“I don’t think that a man with his legacy, name and position, and immersed in the culture of steadfastness and martyrdom thinks of leaving his land and battlefield,” Khaled Hroub, professor at Northwestern University in Qatar who has authored books on Hamas’ inner workings, tells Newsweek.
“If a ground campaign takes place, and the Israelis managed to get to him, he will fight until the last drop of blood,” Hroub adds.
Hamas is fighting to destroy Israel and replace it with an Islamist Palestinian state and Deif’s role has been pivotal, not least in masterminding the assault by land, air and sea on October 7 that left at least 1,300 dead in Israel, followed by crushing Israeli airstrikes on Gaza in which casualties are nearing 2,000.
Deif has already suffered various injuries in assassination attempts: reportedly losing an eye, part of his arm and his legs. He also lost his wife, 7-month-old son and 3-year-old daughter in an airstrike during the last total war in Gaza in 2014. New reports suggest the ongoing IDF campaign has now killed more relatives, including his brother and son, possibly indicating an intensified Israeli campaign to take him out once and for all.
But while Hroub said Deif’s downfall may have short-term impacts on Hamas’ military capabilities, he argued that achieving martyrdom status for a man so widely revered by his supporters—and reviled by detractors—could at the same time actually enhance Hamas’ status and prestige.
“Deif could become a Palestinian Che Guevara,” he said.
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