the 46-year-old father of four were released by Hamas only after his death. On 26 September 2003, he reportedly attended a meeting with Mohammed Deif, Ismail Haniya, one of Hamas' political leaders, and the organisation's spiritual leader, Sheik Ahmed Yasin, when Israeli forces bombed the house where they gathered. Al-Ghoul's eldest son Bilal was killed in a 2001 air strike in Gaza, and his second son Mohammed was killed the following year along with a cousin during a botched raid in the family home in Maghazi, south of Gaza City. Although the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, for security reasons, withheld at the time the identities of the engineers that were involved with Al-Ghoul in overseeing the production of weapons for the group, it was disclosed in March 2006 that Abdel Mo'ti Abu Daf was, along with imad Abbas, Al-Ghoul's top assistant. Daf died on 26 February 2006 after a grenade accidentally detonated during a training. References External links "Israel raid kills Gaza Hamas man" BBC News 22 October 2004 1962 births 2004 deaths Hamas military members Assassinated Palestinian people Assassinated Hamas members People killed by Israeli security forces