The strike near Gaza City that killed Iyad al-Hassani, along with another man the military said was his assistant, dealt yet another blow to the terror group and further dampened hopes for a ceasefire.
In a live televised address Wednesday night that ended just moments ago Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu outlined the reasons for the continuation of Israel's "Operation Shield and Arrow" against the Islamic Jihad terror organization's bases and infrastructure in Gaza.
The southern Gaza Strip neighbourhood of Khan Younis was the focus of the strike conducted early hours of Thursday, targeting a commander of a rocket unit, Al Jazeera reported quoting Israeli forces.
The United Nations Security Council is due to hold an emergency meeting on Wednesday afternoon to discuss the situation in Gaza as widely-expected Palestinian rocket fire failed to materialize on Tuesday night.
Israel's Ministry of Defense revealed that on Wednesday security forces thwarted an attempt to smuggle firearms, silencers and gun cartridges as they were en route from the Gaza Strip to people in Judea and Samaria.
Overnight the IDF attacked targets in the Gaza Strip, including an underground tunnel, a site for storing weapons, military compounds and a military base of the terrorist organization Hamas.
A prominent face of Palestinian resistance to Israel's detention policies, Khader Adnan died in prison on Tuesday after 87 days of hunger strike, Al Jazeera reported citing the authorities.
Amid a fresh upward spiral of violence after Israeli forces struck Gaza and Lebanon on Thursday night, the tensions in the region continue to escalate. In the latest incident, Israel's military broke up a group of Palestinian worshippers near Al Aqsa Mosque today, Al Jazeera reported.
According to Israel Defence Force, it has struck two tunnels, first, one is located in the northern Gaza city of Beit Hanoun and the second one is near the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
At least 4 Palestinians were killed and 23 others were wounded in Jenin on Thursday in the occupied West Bank region, CNN reported citing the Palestinian Authority Health Ministry.