In a joint statement issued Sunday, the IDF Spokesperson and the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) confirmed that Israeli forces struck in the Nuseirat area of the central Gaza Strip on Saturday, eliminating terrorist Saher Nidal Lutfi Saqr. The operation was executed through seamless intelligence and operational coordination between the IDF, the Shin Bet, and the Israel Police Lahav 433 Gideonim elite counterterror unit (Unit 33). Saqr was an active member of Global Jihad networks operating within the Gaza Strip and, throughout the war, supplied weaponry and munitions to the Hamas terror organization.
Video: IDF Spokesperson’s Unit
On October 7, the terrorist invaded Israeli sovereign territory during the murderous cross-border assault. He served as the motorcycle driver who abducted Noa Argamani and her partner Avinatan Or from the grounds of the Nova music festival near Re’im. The horrifying footage showing Argamani screaming for her life while being driven into Gaza on the back of his motorcycle was broadcast globally, becoming one of the most recognizable and searing symbols of the October 7 barbarism. Israeli security forces have now closed the circle with the terrorist who spearheaded the abduction.
The defense establishment emphasized that in recent days, Saqr had been actively coordinating and advancing imminent terror plots targeting IDF personnel and Israeli civilians, liaising directly with military operatives from both Hamas and ‘Palestinian’ Islamic Jihad (PIJ) in systematic breach of ceasefire understandings. Consequently, an aerial strike was authorized to remove the immediate threat he posed. Israeli security forces remain deployed across the sector in accordance with operational frameworks and will act decisively against any immediate threat.