Israel announces killing of terrorists responsible for kidnapping and murder of Bibas, Haggai families

The IDF announced on Saturday that the terrorist As'ad Abu Sharaiya, the head of Kataib al-Mujahideen, the armed wing of the Palestinian Mujahideen Movement in the Gaza Strip, was eliminated Saturday during a strike in Gaza City. 

Sharaiya led a Mujahideen Movement group that infiltrated Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, 2023. He was directly involved in the abduction and murder of Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas. His group also participated in the murder and abductions of married couple Gadi Haggai and Judith Weinstein-Haggai, as well as the abduction and murder of Thai agricultural worker Nattapong Pinta and another foreign national still held captive.

Gadi Haggai and Judith Weinstein-Haggai, dual U.S.-Israeli citizens, were killed during the attacks, and their bodies were taken to Gaza by the Mujahideen group until recovered by the IDF last Wednesday.

Judi and Gad Haggai were beloved parents, grandparents, and members of Kibbutz Nir Oz. They were held hostage for 608 days by terrorists in Gaza.

On October 7, 2023, while taking their daily morning walk around the kibbutz, they were murdered and abducted.

Judi, a devoted… pic.twitter.com/Y0iot0Fbyp

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 5, 2025

Pinta’s body was recovered by the IDF during operations in Gaza last week. Like the Bibas family, he was captured alive but murdered at a later date while in captivity. Pinta was one of around 30 Thai nationals working in agriculture in the southern Gaza Envelope communities. He came to Israel about one and a half years before the Oct. 7 massacre, to work in agriculture to help support his wife and son in Thailand. 

Nattapong Pinta was a hardworking and beloved man who worked in agriculture in Kibbutz Nir Oz. He was held hostage for 610 days by terrorists in Gaza.

On October 7, 2023, he was abducted with some of his friends. His family, wife and son are waiting for his return.

He was… pic.twitter.com/Z9hnBwauul

— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 7, 2025

The Palestinian Mujahideen Movement is one of dozens of smaller terror organizations active in Palestinian society, which have largely escaped the scrutiny of Israel’s intelligence agencies due to its small size and strict operational procedures. The group was formed in the Second Intifada as an offshoot of the Al-Aqsa Martyr’s Brigade, the military wing of Fatah, by leaders who advocated more militant, more Islamic Salafi ideology. 

The IDF does not assess that the Mujahideen Movement was part of the planning for the Oct. 7 attacks, however, like other small terror groups, the organization joined in the massacre and served as an extension of Hamas’ network during the massacre. 

Hamas considers these smaller terror groups as essential to its strategy, and benefited from fundraising efforts by the groups, as well as the presence of other armed groups working against Israel. 

The IDF said in a statement that Abu Sharaiya was responsible for recruiting terrorist operatives in Judea and Samaria and in Israel, for terror attacks and terror activity. Throughout the Iron Swords War, the Kataib al-Mujahideen organization under Sharaiya planned terror attacks against the State of Israel and engaged in combat against IDF troops in the Gaza Strip. 

The military also said that another Mujahideen terrorist, Mahmoud Muhammad Hamid Kuhail, who participated in the attack on Kibbutz Nir Oz on Oct. 7, was eliminated in an additional strike. According to the IDF, Kuhail was one of the terrorists responsible for holding Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir Bibas captive after their abduction. 

The Bibas family released a statement through the Hostages and Missing Families Forum following the announcement of the killing of Sharaiya and Kuhail. 

“The news represents another step for us in closing the circle and the process of accepting the great loss,” the family said. “Shiri, Ariel, and Kfir will not return, but there is some comfort in knowing that the vile murderers will not harm another family.” 

The IDF said it will “continue to operate to locate and eliminate all terrorists from the various terrorist organizations who took part in the brutal massacre on October 7th and were involved in holding Israeli hostages in captivity in the Gaza Strip.”