Senior Hamas commander Raed al-Attar, who led a group of Hamas terrorists to carry out the attack that killed Maj. Benaya Sarel, 26, near Rafah crossing about three weeks ago, was eliminated on Thursday. In a twist of fate, the targeted assassination took place on the same day that Sarel was meant to wed his fiance, Gali Nir. Benaya's father, Shalom Sarel, said on Thursday that "there's a sense of joy that another enemy of the state was erased, but it certainly doesn't mitigate our grief over Benaya's death." Sarel's friends gathered hundreds of donations through a campaign launched on Facebook to hold a meal for the needy at a soup kitchen on the night he was supposed to be married. His friends had heard that in Sarel's home, a tradition has long been upheld that on the day of a great joy, a great service is also offered to those in need. "Benaya would have loved this," his father said. "There is nothing more fitting than doing this in his memory." Dr. Simcha Goldin, the father of Lt. Hadar Goldin who was killed during the same series of battles that erupted near the Rafah crossing on Aug. 1, said, "We knew we'd come full circle. I believe the IDF does what it should, and that it does it excellently." Noam Schalit, whose son Gilad was captured by Hamas operatives in 2006 in an attack orchestrated by al-Attar, said, "I only hope that calm is restored for the residents of the South, that's our main concern right now." Defense officials said that the order to take out three top Hamas operatives -- Mohammed Abu Shamaleh, Mohammed Barhoum and al-Attar -- was given overnight on Wednesday. Israeli jets fired several missiles at a house in the Gaza Strip, believed to be the three's hideout. The images that emerged shortly afterward, as well as the reports from Israeli Air Force pilots, confirmed that the target sustained a direct hit. The Shin Bet indicated that no single "golden tip" had led to the mission's success. Rather, a complex intelligence puzzle assembled over several months led to the location where the three were ultimately eliminated. The intelligence, as well as operational recommendations from top IDF and IAF officials, was reviewed by the cabinet before the mission was green-lighted. Following the authorization, senior Shin Bet officials arrived in the security agency's war room in central Israel, while senior IAF officers arrived at the military's underground command and control center in Tel Aviv. Striving to minimize any potential collateral damage, Shin Bet and IAF officials scrutinized the intelligence again, eventually opting to use F-16 fighter jets in the strike, instructing the pilots to drop between two and three tons of explosives on the target, to ensure the senior Hamas operatives were eliminated.
