The Hamas movement has announced the martyrdom of senior military commander Mohammad Odeh, also known as Abu Amro, a foundational figure in its armed wing who was martyred alongside his wife, three of his children.
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In a statement, Hamas eulogized Odeh as a man who “rose steadfast and proud in the fields of struggle and giving, writing a new page of pride and dignity with his pure blood.” He was martyred along with his wife and his children, Yasser, Yahya, and Jamila.
Odeh is considered a member of the first generation of Hamas’s military wing and one of its earliest founders, and worked alongside key historical figures including commander Abu Muadh Al-Namrouti, Abu Khaled Al-Dayf, and Sheikh Salah Shehadeh.
He spent 30 years alongside senior martyrs, outliving many of them. Despite leaving behind what the movement called a “great legacy,” he remained largely unknown to the public. He lived his life of armed activism away from the spotlight. Aside from one well-known image, obtained by Israeli forces after the Al-Aqsa Flood operation, he was almost absent from media coverage.
A record of confrontation and leadership
Odeh was known for his bravery. In late 2000, when Palestinian Authority security forces came to arrest Sheikh Salah Shehadrh in the Al-Alami area of the Beit Lahia project, Odeh reportedly opened fire and confronted them.
He rose through the ranks of the military apparatus:
- 2001: Became head of a central department within the military manufacturing branch.
- 2009: Appointed commander of the Al-Khalifah Battalion (Central Camp), a position he held for two years.
- Later roles: Served as deputy commander of the Northern Brigade, head of combat intelligence at the central apparatus level, and from 2015 to 2020, served as commander of the Northern Brigade.
According to Hamas, his period of command oversaw a build-up of military capabilities and an ability to unify technical and specialized efforts. He was described as very close to the commander Mohammad Al-Dayf, who reportedly saw in him “trust, leadership, professionalism, and competence.”
Most Recent Roles and Strategic Influence
From 2020 to early 2022, Odeh served as commander of weapons support and combat services. From 2022, through Operation al-Aqsa Flood, until his martyrdom, he was commander of military intelligence within the armed wing and a member of the movement’s national security system, both internally and externally. He was leading one of the most sensitive files in the organization, Hamas stated.
He formulated strategic intelligence assessments with professionalism and wisdom, relying on specialists and experts. He signed documents submitted to the leadership with the codename “Yasser.”
Senior commanders reportedly viewed him as the future commander of the military wing. However, he was described as having shunned leadership roles, avoiding appointments and top positions on multiple occasions, most recently after Operation al-Aqsa Flood and even following the death of commander Abu Saib Al-Haddad.
Those close to him said Odeh preferred collective, technical, and specialized teamwork, focusing on rapid achievements, particularly in long-term strategic matters.
