Khan Younis, Jul 13: Israel said it targeted Hamas' shadowy military commander in a massive strike Saturday in the crowded southern Gaza Strip that killed at least 71 people, according to local health officials.

Hamas immediately rejected the claim that Mohammed Deif was in the area.

Israeli officials confirmed that Deif and a second Hamas commander, Rafa Salama, were the targets. It was not immediately known whether Deif was among the dead.

A military official later said they were “still checking and verifying the result of the strike," and did not deny it took place in an area the Israeli military had designated as safe for hundreds of thousands of Palestinians.

Deif and Hamas' top official in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, are believed by Israel to be the chief architects of the October 7 attack that killed some 1,200 people in southern Israel and triggered the Israel-Hamas war.

Not seen in public for years, Deif has long topped Israel's most-wanted list and is believed to have escaped multiple Israeli assassination attempts. On October 7, Hamas issued a rare voice recording of Deif announcing the “Al Aqsa Flood” operation.

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Shivpuri (PTI): The 60-year-old mother of a rape accused was killed allegedly by the victim's brother in Madhya Pradesh's Shivpuri district, a police official said on Saturday.

The incident took place on Friday, Rannod police station house officer (SHO) Arvind Chauhan said.

"An anganwadi worker returning from a hospital was offered a lift by one Inder Gurjar, who took her to a secluded spot and raped her. She called up her brothers to narrate the ordeal. One brother of the victim along with two associates went to Gurjar's house and assaulted him. When Gurjar's mother Sirkunwarbai (60) intervened, she was attacked with a sharp weapon. She died on the spot," he said.

Based on a complaint filed by the deceased woman's daughter-in-law, three persons were booked for murder. One of them was held on Saturday, the official added.

A separate case has also been registered against Gurjar for rape, he said.

Police personnel have been deployed in the area in view of tension following the incident, the official added.