Husam al-Astal, leader of an anti-Hamas militia and former Palestinian Authority Preventive Security member, announced on March 1, 2026, between 1:16 PM and 4:16 PM UTC that the 'head of the snake'—a key Hamas figure—has been eliminated, while warning that Hamas commander Izz al-Din al-Haddad's days are numbered. The statement was posted via social media during this three-hour period. Al-Astal made the declaration in a post shared by OSINT613 on X (formerly Twitter), using the phrase 'the head of the snake has been eliminated' to describe the targeting of a high-ranking Hamas leader, according to the source at https://x.com/Osint613/status/2028137196721500367. He specifically identified Izz al-Din al-Haddad, a Hamas commander, as the next likely target, stating his 'days are numbered,' as reported in the same social media update within the reporting window.
