Three sons of Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh were killed in an Israeli attack

The family of the Palestinian group Hamas and its main leader Ismail Haniyeh said that Haniyeh’s three sons were killed in an Israeli airstrike in Gaza on Wednesday.

Hamas says Haniyeh’s three sons, Hazem, Amir and Muhammad, were killed in a car bomb attack in Gaza’s Al-Shati camp.

According to news agency AFP, Hamas later said in a statement that Haniyeh’s three granddaughters, Mona, Amal, Razan, and a grandson, Khaled, were among those killed in the “cowardly” attack.

Ismail Haniyeh told Al Jazeera TV immediately after the attack that ‘Our demands are clear and specific and we will not make any concessions on them. If the enemy thinks that targeting my sons at the height of negotiations and before the movement has sent a response will force Hamas to change its position, they are mistaken.

According to the Reuters news agency, Ismail Haniyeh, who lives in the Gulf Arab state of Qatar, added that “the blood of my sons is not dearer than the blood of our people.”

Reuters added that Haniyeh is the “tough face” of Hamas’s international diplomacy. In November, Haniyeh’s home was destroyed in Israel’s attacks on the Gaza Strip.

Hamas said on Tuesday it was studying Israel’s ceasefire proposal but said it was “irresponsible” and did not meet any of the Palestinian demands.

Israel’s air and ground offensive has devastated Gaza over the past seven months. Hamas wants an end to Israeli military operations and a withdrawal from the enclave, allowing displaced Palestinians to return home.

Ismail Haniyeh’s eldest son confirmed in a Facebook post that three of his brothers had been killed. Abdus Salam Haniya wrote that ‘Thanks be to Allah who blessed us with the martyrdom of my brothers, Hazim, Amir and Muhammad and their children.’

Haniyeh, who was appointed to the top post of Hamas in 2017, spent time in Turkey and the Qatari capital of Doha, avoiding Israel-imposed travel restrictions on Gaza.