Unverified Report: Ex-Italian Spy Claims Hamas Killed 30 in Gaza Raid, Alleges US Troop Presence
An interview in the Italian daily Il Tempo has stirred controversy after Marco Mancini, a former senior Italian intelligence officer, claimed Hamas staged two deadly raids in Gaza in mid-August, including one that allegedly killed 30 Israeli and American soldiers. The account has not been corroborated by independent sources.
Mancini, once head of counter-espionage and a top figure in Italy’s Department of Information for Security (DIS), told the paper that a Hamas commando of 15 fighters infiltrated an Israeli base near Khan Yunis on August 20 through a tunnel, killing 30 people, including the commander, before one attacker blew himself up as Israeli drones closed in. He alleged that “Israeli and American soldiers” were present at the facility, which he described as a strategic site with multiple buildings, weapons, dormitories, and detailed personnel rosters.
He further claimed that two days earlier, on August 18, Hamas fighters attacked in Gaza’s Zeitoun neighborhood, killing eight Israeli soldiers and attempting to seize hostages. “The commando acted with extreme precision,” Mancini said, adding that they carried equipment to transport wounded captives.
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Mancini suggested Hamas is pursuing a new strategy of hostage-taking under its current leader, Izz al-Din al-Haddad, known as Abu Najib. “The structure of Hamas still relies on about 35,000 fighters in Gaza, above and below ground,” he told Il Tempo, alleging that the group maintains “mafia-style terrorism,” where “the population is under complete control and anyone who tries to dissociate is eliminated with their family.”
He also asserted that Hamas continues to receive funding “even in cryptocurrencies,” claiming that donations are skimmed by a criminal network that keeps half of the money.
Mancini put the number of Israeli hostages still alive at 18, saying, “In almost two years, no one has managed to free them.”
He identified Abdullah Khalil Abdine, also known as Abu Firas, as the commander of the Khan Yunis raid, saying he was killed in the assault. Mancini noted that Palestinian outlets reported Abdine as a civilian killed in the fighting.
No independent evidence has emerged to support these claims. The Israel Defense Forces has not confirmed such attacks. In statements carried by Israeli media, it only reported that one soldier was moderately wounded by gunfire in Zeitoun on August 18. There is no credible confirmation that US forces are operating in Gaza.
