Hamas claims Israeli jet shoot-down; report of Israeli soldiers captured

November 17, 2012

The "Al-Qassam Brigades," a division of Hamas, claims to have shot down an Israeli F-16 fighter jet over the Gaza Strip yesterday (Friday). According to some reports, Hamas captured the two pilots. Israel denies that an F-16 was shot down saying, "It's not true".

The Al-Qassam Brigades made their claims following reports that another leader of Hamas, Ahmad Abu Jalal, was killed in an Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) airstrike yesterday. On Wednesday, Hamas commander Ahmed Jabari, who was in charge of Izz el-Deen Al-Qassam, the armed division of Hamas, was killed in an IDF airstrike.

These reports come as, the Egyptian Prime Minister, took a brief two hour tour of the Gaza Strip which failed to stop any fighting between Hamas and IDF. "The cause of Palestinians is the cause of all Arabs and Muslims. Palestinians are heroes," said Kandil while visiting Shifa Hospital. He also stated that Egypt stands loyal to the Palestinians.