The IDF and Shin Bet have confirmed the elimination of Hamas leader Ashraf Nafa and another militant in Tulkarm.
A video from the IDF Spokesperson's Office shows a drone strike targeting a group of four armed militants in a residential area. Palestinian sources report that two militant commanders, a fighter, and three civilians were killed. The circumstances of civilian casualties are unclear.
The operation, which began on July 22 and concluded on July 23, involved Duvdevan and Haruv special forces, the 636th Nitzan Intelligence Battalion, Shin Bet, and Border Police officers. During the operation, a shootout occurred, leading to the deployment of an attack UAV that targeted the militants.
Ashraf Nafa was reportedly involved in manufacturing and planting explosives along IDF routes, maintaining contacts with Hamas abroad, and distributing extremist materials. The death of another terrorist, Muhammad Ode, was also confirmed. Ode participated in armed attacks on Israeli soldiers and financed and supplied equipment for militants in Tulkarm.
Earlier reports indicated six people were killed in the drone strike, including Nafa, another militant commander known as Abu Abdu, and several civilians. However, some sources suggest only five were killed: four terrorists and an armed woman identified as Iman Salem, who was a "combat medic" for the terrorists.
The bodies of the killed terrorists were removed from Tulkarm by an army bulldozer. Reports also indicated injuries, including a man who was shot and several girls hurt by glass fragments.
The IDF video shows Iman Salem and possibly her daughters standing near the militants at the time of the airstrike. Salem appears to have been fatally wounded by shrapnel, though the fate of her daughters remains unclear. Some Palestinian sources report five rather than six casualties, suggesting the deaths of four terrorists and their armed nurse.
