Israel says senior Hamas member seized as strikes kill three during Gaza raid

ByYolande Knell Middle East correspondent, Reporting fromJerusalem. 1 September 2026, 11: 40 BST.

Key points

• Since then, more than 73, 460 individuals have been killed in Gaza, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry, whose figures are considered reliable by the UN.
• Israel Katz was speaking after reports of a raid by Israeli special forces and an Israel-backed Palestinian militia in Gaza City.
• But after session Israelis living in Netiv HaAsara, next to northern Gaza, Katz stated the activity of Israeli forces in the territory "continues at all times".
• Earlier, Palestinians in a crowded part of western Gaza City had documented a heavy Israeli bombardment, with two vehicles hit and turned to wreckage.
• Reports say that Israeli special forces and pro-Israeli Palestinian militiamen had entered the area, but their presence was discovered.

Israel's defence minister notes a senior member of the Palestinian armed group Hamas has been captured.

Israeli air strikes meanwhile killed at least two children and a woman, local medics say.

Notably, a third child was killed in a separate incident in central Gaza.

Notably, the Israeli defence minister did not say who had captured the Hamas commander, whom he did not identify.

"A short time ago, a senior Hamas terrorist was arrested – and this is our policy: we do not wait for threats, but pursue Hamas terrorists, thwart them and destroy their terror infrastructures, " he continued.

Videos captured chaotic scenes, with the sound of gunfire and the aftermath of strikes.

Reports say that Israeli special forces and pro-Israeli Palestinian militiamen had entered the area, but their presence was discovered. Some Israeli media suggest that only a local armed militia operated on the ground.

Notably, a Palestinian security source informed the BBC the target of the Israeli operation was a senior official in the Hamas internal security service.

Notably, a spokesman for Gaza's Hamas-run administration media office, Ismail al-Thawabta, stated: "An Israeli special forces unit attempted to carry out a security operation in Gaza City, but the unit was exposed while carrying out the mission."

In practice, the ensuing Israeli strikes "resulted in a number of people being killed and others injured, in addition to the deaths of several members of the special forces unit", he continued.

In practice, the Israeli military has only confirmed striking a number of targets in Gaza "in order to remove threats" to its troops, adding that none of them were injured.

When regarding 1, 200 residents were killed and 251 others were taken hostage, the Gaza war was triggered by the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023.

For now, israel says senior Hamas member seized as strikes kill three during Gaza remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.