Israeli commander who oversaw mission that killed Hamas leader dies in bomb blast

The veteran Israeli combat leader who led the mission in the Gaza Strip that killed Hamas militant leader Yahya Sinwar last week was himself killed in a bomb blast over the weekend, Israel Defense Forces officials said Tuesday.

Col. Ahsan Daksa, 41, a member of Israel’s Druze minority, was commander of the IDF’s 401st Armored Brigade. On  Sunday, he was leading an operation to dismantle Hamas strongholds when an improvised explosive device detonated while he was dismounted from his tank, officials said.

Maj. Gen. Yaron Finkelman, commander of the IDF’s Southern Command, said he spoke with Col. Daksa hours before he led the brigade’s first operation in Rafah. He called him one of the best field commanders he knew and remarked that he always led from the front.

“Those operations, that effort, created the conditions that ultimately led to the elimination of Sinwar. We will always remember him and his legacy and his legacy is clear — to continue the mission, not to stop, to see through the pain — and the pain is immense for all of us — and to do so with clarity and determination,” Gen. Finkelman said, according to the IDF’s Telegram social messaging page.

Col. Daksa, who took command of the 401st Armored Brigade in June, was also a decorated veteran of the 2006 Second Lebanon War. He was the sixth IDF colonel to have been killed in combat operations against Hamas. Lt. Col. Salman Habaka, another Druze officer in the IDF, was killed in Gaza in November 2023, officials said.

“Ehsan’s character, combined with his love for our homeland, his creativity and fearless sense of initiative, made him a role model and source of pride for his troops and commanders,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in a statement. “The State of Israel lost a bold and courageous commander [and] a leader who dedicated his life and work to the security of our nation.”