IDF says 16 Hamas finance operatives killed during the war in Gaza

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) says it has killed 16 people it describes as key figures in moving money to Hamas over the course of the war. According to a statement from the IDF spokesperson, the strikes were carried out jointly with the Israel Security Agency (ISA), and every one of the men killed had managed transfers of funds for the group's military activities in the Gaza Strip.

The military put the total value of those transfers at more than one billion. Emanuel Fabian, military correspondent for the Times of Israel, reported that the IDF gave the figure as more than $1 billion and said the money moved through what it called a network of "dozens of money changers" operating in Turkey and in the Gaza Strip. Fabian also reported that the military warned it would keep targeting Hamas members involved in financing the group's military wing.

Who carried out the strikes

The IDF is Israel's military. The ISA, better known in Israel and abroad as the Shin Bet, is the country's domestic security and intelligence service, responsible for counterterrorism work. The two bodies frequently operate together in Gaza, with the Shin Bet supplying intelligence used to select targets. The Jerusalem Post described the announcement as a joint IDF and Shin Bet effort against Hamas funding networks and financial operations.

What the military says the money paid for

In a post on X, the IDF said the funds were used to pay Hamas fighters, build up weapons capabilities, restore infrastructure damaged in the fighting and advance attacks against Israeli civilians and soldiers. The military framed the campaign as an effort to disrupt the group's ability to finance itself, rather than as a series of isolated strikes.

According to Fabian's account of the statement, the IDF said it and the Shin Bet were concentrating efforts on harming Hamas through its finances. The figure of 16 is presented as a cumulative total covering the war as a whole, not as the result of a single operation.

Why money changers matter

Money changers are informal or semi-formal exchange and transfer businesses that can move cash across borders outside the conventional banking system. In a territory such as Gaza, where access to formal banking has been heavily restricted, such networks can be one of the few practical channels for moving funds in and out. That makes them a point of focus for militaries and intelligence services seeking to cut off the flow of money to armed groups.

The IDF's reference to Turkey places part of the alleged network outside Gaza. The reports do not say whether any of the 16 men were killed outside the Gaza Strip, or what role, if any, individuals based in Turkey played beyond acting as exchange points.

How the claim was reported

The announcement originated with the IDF, which published it through its official Telegram channel and on X. The Times of Israel's military correspondent relayed it on Telegram and X, and The Jerusalem Post carried it on its defense news pages. All of these accounts rest on the military's own statement. None of the reports describes independent confirmation of the number of people killed, their identities or the sums involved.

There is a small difference in how the total is expressed. The IDF spokesperson's Telegram statement, as provided, gives the figure as more than one billion without naming a currency in the text available to us. Fabian's report attributes to the IDF a figure of more than $1 billion. We report both as stated.

What the reports do not say

• The reports do not name any of the 16 men or give the dates or locations of the strikes that killed them.
• They do not explain how the IDF calculated the total value of the transfers, or over what period that money moved.
• They do not say whether the strikes caused other casualties.
• They do not describe the specific money changing businesses involved, or say whether any action has been taken against the network outside Gaza.
• Hamas's response to the announcement, if any, is not included in the material.