Handala claims senior Mossad officer killed after months of surveillance

The international hacker group Handala claims that a senior official of the Israeli spy agency Mossad has been killed following a bomb explosion in his personal vehicle.

In a statement posted on X, Handala said it carried out a targeted car bombing operation and released a video alongside its claim of responsibility.

The group said a senior director of Mossad’s “new infiltration unit,” linked to the "Iran file," was killed in the morning blast after a bomb was planted in his vehicle on Highway 20.

Handala added that the operation followed months of intelligence gathering, monitoring, and surveillance.

The claim came after a car bomb exploded on a major Tel Aviv highway during rush hour on Thursday, killing one person.

The blast occurred on Highway 20 (the Ayalon Highway) near the Holon Interchange, one of the busiest routes in the Tel Aviv metropolitan area.

Israel’s emergency service, Magen David Adom, said it received reports of the explosion at around 9:20 a.m. Paramedics found a critically injured person at the scene, who was later pronounced dead.

The incident prompted a large deployment of police and emergency services. Police said a bomb weighing approximately half a kilogram detonated inside the vehicle.

Initial reports identified the victim as a 27-year-old man, while later updates described her as a 35-year-old former policewoman.

In its statement, Handala challenged Israeli authorities to publicly confirm the identity of the victim, while pointing to the inability of the regime's security services to protect senior figures.

Handala hacktivists expose identities of Israeli forces involved in attack on Gaza aid flotilla

The pro-resistance Handala hacking group reveals the identities of 69 Israeli Navy officers who recently attacked a Gaza-bound humanitarian flotilla.

The group also warned that even individuals under the strictest protection of the regime were not immune to its reach.

“Will the security agencies of the Israeli regime dare to speak the truth, or will they continue to deny it?” the group said.

Handala first emerged in December 2023 and has since conducted a series of cyber operations against Israeli and US targets, including data leaks, doxing, and website defacements. It has also previously claimed to have surveilled Mossad personnel and leaked documents identifying spy operatives.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir