Mohammed Deif

Mohammed Deif (محمد الضيف), born Mohammed Al-Masri (محمد المصري), is a Palestinian militant and the head of the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of the Islamist organization Hamas.

His family originates from al-Qubeiba, near Ramleh, but had to flee or were expelled by Zionist militias during the 1948 Palestine war.

According to the Shin Bet, either his father or his uncle had participated in sporadic raids into Israel conducted by Palestinian militants in the 1950s.

Although not much is known about the details of his early life and upbringing, he reportedly had to temporarily drop out of school to support his low-income family, working with his father in upholstery and later starting a small poultry farm.

Mohammed Al-Masri was born in 1965 in the Khan Yunis Refugee Camp in the Gaza Strip that was set up after the 1948 Palestine war.

He reportedly left school temporarily to support his low-income family.

Mohammed Diab Ibrahim al-Masri was born in 1965 in the Khan Younis refugee camp in the southern Gaza Strip.

Masri joined Hamas in 1987 and became known as Mohammed Deif, meaning 'guest' in Arabic, possibly in reference to the nomadic lifestyle he adopted to avoid being targeted.

Deif joined Hamas in 1987, weeks after its establishment during the First Intifada.

He graduated with a bachelor's degree in chemistry from the Islamic University of Gaza in 1988.

It is understood that he studied chemistry at the Islamic University of Gaza, from which he graduated with a Bachelor's degree in 1988.

During his years at the university, he had a passion for theatre, establishing a theatre group called "The Returners", in reference to Palestinian refugees longing to return to the lands they lived on before to the Nakba.

He played a number of roles, including those of historical figures.

He was arrested by Israeli authorities in 1989 for his involvement with the organization.

After 16 months of detention, he was released in a prisoner exchange.

Soon after his release, he helped establish the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of Hamas.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, he planned several suicide bombing attacks, including the 1996 Jaffa Road bus bombings.

During the 1990s and early 2000s, he was behind a number of suicide bombing attacks, including the 1996 Jaffa Road bus bombings.

He also oversaw the kidnappings and later killings of Israeli soldiers Shahar Simani, Aryeh Frankenthal, and Nachshon Wachsman in the 1990s.

Deif was close to Emad Akel and Yahya Ayyash, who were assassinated by Israel in 1993 and 1996 respectively.

He trained with, and learnt bombmaking from, Ayyash.

After Ayyash's assassination, Deif reduced his profile to avoid being targeted.

Deif has been the Israeli military's 'most wanted' man since 1995 for killing Israeli soldiers and civilians.

He was detained by the Palestinian Authority at Israel's request in 2000 before escaping months later.

In May 2000, Deif was arrested at Israel's request by the Palestinian National Authority, but he escaped in December with assistance from some of his guards.

He has survived at least seven Israeli assassination attempts since 2001, the most recent of which came during the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis.

He became the head of the al-Qassam Brigades in 2002, and has since developed the group's capabilities, transforming it from a cluster of amateur cells to organized military units.

He has masterminded the group's strategy of combining rocket attacks on Israel with tunnel warfare, and was central to planning the 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel that initiated the 2023 Israel–Hamas war.

Deif became the head of the al-Qassam Brigades after Israel assassinated Salah Shehade in July 2002.

Between July 2006 and November 2012, effective command was exercised by Deif's deputy, Ahmed Jabari, after Deif was seriously wounded in an Israeli assassination attempt.

As the overall commander of the Qassam Brigades he is thought to be the main organizer of the daring and successful raid into Israel that killed two IDF soldiers and captured Gilad Shalit in June 2006, as well as the five-year operations to deceive Mossad and Shin Bet about Shalit's location in Gaza.

He is also in charge of the Qassam Brigades' procurement of weapons from abroad, has overseen the transfer and manufacturing of Iranian Fajr-5 rocket components into Gaza, and has maintained a correspondence with Iranian Quds Force commander Esmail Qaani and his predecessor Qasem Soleimani.

In a letter, Soleimani had called Deif "my dear brother" and a "living martyr".

During the 2012 split in the Hamas leadership over the organization's stance toward Bashar al-Assad, Deif, along with Yahya Sinwar, are thought to have belonged in the pro-Iranian and pro-Syrian faction within Hamas.

His wife, infant son, and 3-year-old daughter were killed in an Israeli airstrike in 2014.

The United States Department of State added Deif to its list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists in 2015.

The European Union added Deif to their terrorist blacklist in 2023.

In September 2015, the US Department of State added Deif and three other Hamas leaders to the American list of Specially Designated Global Terrorists.

In December 2023, the European Union added him to their terror blacklist in 2023.

Deif has been credited with transforming the al-Qassam Brigades from a cluster of amateur cells to organized military units, described as an 'army,' that are capable of invading Israel.