Yasser Abu Shabab, the leader of a Gazan militia that collaborated with Israel and fought against Hamas, was killed in a gunfight in the Gaza Strip on Thursday, Israeli security sources confirmed.

According to the sources, he was critically wounded in a clan feud and evacuated by the IDF to Soroka Hospital in Israel, where he died of his wounds. However, a Soroka spokesperson denied that Abu Shabab was treated in the hospital.

On the other hand, social networks in Gaza reported that Abu Shabab was eliminated along with a number of his militia members in a Hamas ambush.

The full circumstances of his death are still unclear.

Abu Shabab led the “Popular Forces” militia, battled against Hamas, and even seized control of large areas of Gaza. He was the most wanted man on Hamas’s hit list and was even dubbed the “walking dead man” due to the many threats to his life.

In the past, Abu Shabab told Kan News that his militia members are young Palestinians from the Strip. “We have tasted the bitterness and injustice caused to us by Hamas, and we have taken it upon ourselves to deal with this aggression,” he said. “We support any legitimate force that works toward eliminating injustice and corruption.”

“We have young people, and we have an army. We are conducting training in the field. We have taken it upon ourselves to work to liberate the people from injustice and violence. We have strength, and there will be victims and bloodshed. We will pay the price to liberate our people.”

He believed that the Popular Forces will win over Hamas and take control of Gaza: “Hamas knows and understands this. The Popular Forces will be the successors in Gaza after Hamas’s crushing defeat. They are the reason for the plight of the Palestinian people, the persecution of citizens, and the killing of innocent people.”

His militia operated in southern Gaza, especially in Rafah.

(YWN Israel Desk—Jerusalem)