# Israeli UAV strike in Al‑Mawasi kills Hamas Rafah Brigade commander Samir Abu Younes

*Sunday, November 15, 2026 at 6:18 AM UTC — Hamer Intelligence Services Desk*

**Published**: 2026-11-15T06:18:28.608Z (40m ago)
**Category**: conflict | **Region**: Middle East
**Importance**: 8/10
**Sources**: https://t.me/operativnoZSU/226143 | https://t.me/sputnik_africa/75910 | https://t.me/englishabuali/81934 | https://t.me/AMK_Mapping/40660 | https://t.me/worldnews/79106
**Permalink**: https://hamerintel.com/data/articles/23534.md
**Source**: https://hamerintel.com/summaries

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**Deck**: An Israeli drone strike on a tent in Al‑Mawasi near Khan Yunis in southern Gaza killed Samir Abu Younes, the newly appointed Hamas Rafah Brigade commander, according to Gazan sources and an official IDF statement.

The commander of Hamas’s Rafah Brigade was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza on 15 November, according to Gazan sources and the Israel Defense Forces (IDF).

Local sources in Gaza reported that Samir Abu Younes, also known as Abu Mohammad, died when an Israeli unmanned aerial vehicle fired four missiles at a tent in the Al‑Mawasi area of Khan Yunis, in the southern part of the Gaza Strip. They described him as the newly appointed commander of the Rafah Brigade of the Izz ad‑Din al‑Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s armed wing.

An IDF spokesperson later officially confirmed that Israeli forces had eliminated Samir Abu Younes as the Rafah Brigade commander. Israeli and Palestinian media outlets also reported on the strike and his death.

According to the IDF, he is the third Rafah Brigade commander to be killed, underlining the rate at which leadership positions in that formation have been targeted since heavy fighting began in the Rafah area.

The strike took place in Al‑Mawasi, a coastal strip near Khan Yunis where displaced people have gathered at various points during the conflict. Hitting a tent encampment with multiple missiles highlights the difficulty of separating armed actors from civilians in crowded areas and raises the risk of additional casualties around such high‑value targets.

Removing a brigade‑level commander can disrupt short‑term planning, communications, and morale within his unit. It also forces Hamas to move quickly to name replacements under fire. How much this loss affects Rafah Brigade’s operational capacity is unclear from available information, given that such organizations plan for leadership attrition.

Further clarity will depend on confirmed casualty figures from the Al‑Mawasi strike, any follow‑up operations Israel announces in relation to intelligence gained from the attack, and signals from Hamas about how it reshuffles its command structure in Rafah and southern Gaza.