HMM

Hamas Member Killed in Malaysia

As four more Palestinians are killed in Gaza protests, including a 15-year-old boy.

Hamas on Saturday said one of its members was assassinated in Malaysia, just a day after an Israeli official warned of using targeted killings against the militant group. Fadi al-Batash, described by Hamas as a researcher in “the field of energy,” was said to have been killed while on his way to a Kuala Lumpur mosque. Kuala Lumpur police confirmed the killing of a 35-year-old Palestinian man but did not identify him as a member of Hamas. On Friday, Israel’s intelligence minister, Yisrael Katz, reportedly warned Hamas rulers that any threats against Israeli commanders would be met with targeted killings. Israeli authorities have blamed the militant group for weeks of unrest at the Gaza border, with Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Saturday accusing the group of using demonstrators as human shields. Four Palestinians were killed by Israeli troops on Friday, including a 15-year-old boy. The death toll of Palestinians now stands at 32 in less than a month, though Lieberman said the “only culprits” in the latest killings are Hamas members.