Mahmoud Afana, a Hamas terrorist who gained notoriety for boasting about killing 10 Jews during the October 7, 2023, massacre, has been killed in an Israeli airstrike. The attack took place on Thursday in the Gazan city of Deir al-Balah.
Palestinian media confirmed Afana’s death on Saturday, though the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) have yet to officially verify the strike or his passing. However, the Israeli Foreign Ministry confirmed the news later that evening. An official statement posted on X (formerly Twitter) from the ministry reads, “On October 7, Mahmoud Afana called his parents to boast that he had murdered ten Jews with his own hands. Today, he was eliminated by the IDF.”
Two weeks after the deadly attacks, Afana called his family to celebrate his brutal actions. In a recorded phone conversation, later shared by Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen, Afana can be heard speaking to his mother from a Jewish woman’s phone. He recounts how he killed a Jewish woman and her husband in Kibbutz Mefalsim during the attack and proudly tells his father that he personally murdered 10 Israelis. At one point, Afana even offers to show his father the gruesome aftermath via video call.
In the conversation, Afana is heard describing himself as the first Hamas fighter to enter Kibbutz Mefalsim, further embellishing his role in the massacre. His mother expresses pride, saying “Oh my son, may God protect you,” while his father, audibly moved, is heard crying tears of joy.
Afana, a member of Hamas’s Nukhba forces, also boasted to his brother that the blood of 10 Jews was on his hands, firmly stating, “Yes, I killed 10, I swear.” He referred to himself as a “hero” for his actions.
His death marks the end of his public boasting about the October 7 massacre, one of the deadliest days in the region’s recent history.