Alaa Adeeb Abdel-Jabbar Shreiteh
(in Arabic) Archived from th

on 6 May 2024. (; 22 December 1979 – 4 May 2024) was a

Palestinian Palestinians () are an Arab ethnonational group native to the Levantine region of Palestine. *: "Palestine was part of the first wave of conquest following Muhammad's death in 632 CE; Jerusalem fell to the Caliph Umar in 638. The indigenous p ...

militant. Born and raised in

Tulkarm Tulkarm or Tulkarem (, ''Ṭūlkarm'') is a Palestinians, Palestinian city in the West Bank, the capital of the Tulkarm Governorate of the State of Palestine. The Israeli city of Netanya is to the west, and the Palestinian territories, Palestinia ...

, he was the head of the

Al-Qassam Brigades Al-Qassam Brigades, also known as the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades (EQB; ), are the military wing of the Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islamist organization Hamas. Led by Mohammed Deif until his death on 13 July 2024, Al-Qassam Brigades are ...

in the

West Bank The West Bank is located on the western bank of the Jordan River and is the larger of the two Palestinian territories (the other being the Gaza Strip) that make up the State of Palestine. A landlocked territory near the coast of the Mediter ...

until his death."Hamas says West Bank commander among operatives killed in IDF raid"
/ref> Having been imprisoned by

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

for 14 years until his release in 2016, he led the planning of several Palestinian offensive operations against

Israeli forces The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the State of Israel. It consists of three service branches: the Israeli Ground Forces, the Israeli Air Force, and ...

during the

Gaza war The Gaza war is an armed conflict in the Gaza Strip and southern Israel fought since 7 October 2023. A part of the unresolved Israeli–Palestinian conflict, Israeli–Palestinian and Gaza–Israel conflict, Gaza–Israel conflicts dating ...

, one of the most notable being the

attack on Route 557 Attack may refer to: Warfare and combat * Attack (fencing) * Charge (warfare) * Offensive (military) * Strike (attack) Books and publishing * ''The Attack'' (novel), a book * '' Attack No. 1'', comic and animation * Attack! Books, a publishe ...

in the

Tulkarm Governorate The Tulkarm Governorate () is an administrative district and one of the 16 Governorates of Palestine, located in the north-western West Bank. The governorate's land area is 268 square kilometres. According to the Palestinian Central Bureau o ...

, which caused several Israeli casualties and was the first recorded Palestinian operation in the West Bank in 20 years, leading to him becoming one of Israel's most wanted until his death in a gunfight in an Israeli raid on

Deir al-Ghusun Deir al-Ghusun () is a Palestinian people, Palestinian town in the Tulkarm Governorate, located eight kilometers northeast of the city of Tulkarm in the northern West Bank, Palestine. The town is near the Green Line (Israel), Green Line (border be ...

Life and military career

Alaa Adeeb Abdel-Jabbar Shreiteh was born in

Palestine Palestine, officially the State of Palestine, is a country in West Asia. Recognized by International recognition of Palestine, 147 of the UN's 193 member states, it encompasses the Israeli-occupied West Bank, including East Jerusalem, and th ...

, on 22 December 1979, where he grew up and received his education. He was arrested by

on 26 November 2002 for being a member of

Hamas The Islamic Resistance Movement, abbreviated Hamas (the Arabic acronym from ), is a Palestinian nationalist Sunni Islam, Sunni Islamism, Islamist political organisation with a military wing, the Qassam Brigades. It has Gaza Strip under Hama ...

and for orchestrating attacks using

improvised explosive device An improvised explosive device (IED) is a bomb constructed and deployed in ways other than in conventional warfare, conventional military action. It may be constructed of conventional military explosives, such as an artillery shell, attached t ...

s during the

Second Intifada The Second Intifada (; ), also known as the Al-Aqsa Intifada, was a major uprising by Palestinians against Israel and its Israeli-occupied territories, occupation from 2000. Starting as a civilian uprising in Jerusalem and October 2000 prot ...

. He faced "severe torture" during interrogation as reported by the Palestinian Prisoners Center for Studies, and was released on 24 March 2016 after spending 14 years in Israeli prison. He married after his release, fathering three children. He later continued his university education in the domain of Islamic Sharia, which he could not complete due to his death. He became a military commander in Palestine's

, where he led the planning of various Palestinian military operations against Israel, notably the 2 November 2023 attack on Route 557, which was the first Palestinian military operation in the West Bank in 20 years. Shreiteh was then pursued by Israel, which raided his home several times before finally killing him on 4 May 2024.

Death

Battle

At around 11:00 ( PSST) on 3 May 2024, Shreiteh and three other members of the

were surrounded by the

Israeli army The Israeli Ground Forces () are the Army, ground forces of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF). The commander is the GOC Army Headquarters, General Officer Commanding with the rank of major general, the ''Mazi'', subordinate to the Chief of the Gen ...

in a house in the town of

in the Tulkarm Governorate, where a violent clash ensued between them, followed by the arrival of Israeli reinforcements with more than 50 military vehicles and four military bulldozers. The Israeli army kept the house surrounded for 15 hours, during which

air An atmosphere () is a layer of gases that envelop an astronomical object, held in place by the gravity of the object. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A stellar atmosph ...

and

drone strikes Drone warfare is a form of warfare using military drones or military robots. The robots may be remote controlled or have varying levels of autonomy during their mission. Types of robots include unmanned combat aerial vehicles (UCAV) or weaponi ...

were called on the house. After fully bulldozing the house with everyone inside with the military bulldozers, Israel announced that it had succeeded in killing Shreiteh and the three other members, alongside a fifth member whose identity remained unknown.

Funeral

Shreiteh's body was buried in Turkalm on 15 May 2024 with the attendance of thousands of Palestinians after the identity of his body was confirmed through a

DNA test Genetic testing, also known as DNA testing, is used to identify changes in DNA sequence or chromosome structure. Genetic testing can also include measuring the results of genetic changes, such as RNA analysis as an output of gene expression, or ...

. The funeral procession set off from the Martyr Dr. Thabet Thabet Governmental Hospital towards his home on Haddadeen Street, where he was given a "last farewell look". He was then transported to the Uthman Ibn Affan Mosque, where prayers were prayed on him, before burying him in the western cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Shreiteh, Alaa 1979 births 2024 deaths People from Tulkarm Hamas military members Assassinated Hamas members Military personnel killed in the Israel–Hamas war West Bank in the Israel–Hamas war Tulkarm in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict