The name that many Palestinians keep repeating today is “Abu Ubaida,” the military spokesman for the Al-Qassam Brigades, the armed wing of the Hamas movement. The masked man (Al-Mulatham in Arabic) also imposed himself on the Israelis, in the midst of a difficult, complex and fierce battle, which turned him into a hero for many Hamas supporters in the Arab and Western worlds, and a hated enemy for Tel Aviv and its allies.
“Abu Ubaida” has been appearing on screens since Oct. 7, after Mohammad Al-Deif, the commander of Al-Qassam, announced the start of the Al-Aqsa Flood operation.
His interventions come once every few days, via a recorded speech, wearing the green camouflage soldiers’ uniform, and wearing a red keffiyeh, to present the position of Al-Qassam and talk about developments in the battle.
Since the start of the Israeli war on the Gaza Strip, Abu Ubaida has appeared before or after every decisive position, and has managed the media war with remarkable professionalism in the face of the Israeli spokesmen, according to the Palestinian supporters of Hamas.
“Abu Ubaida” was known for the first time in 2002 as one of Al-Qassam’s field officials. He spoke to almost all the media and in press conferences, but never uncovered his face, following the example of the former leader of Al-Qassam, Imad Aqel, who was killed by Israel in 1993.
After the Israeli withdrawal from Gaza in 2005, “Abu Ubaida” was officially appointed spokesman for Al-Qassam.
The man comes from the town of Naalia in Gaza, which Israel occupied in 1948, and now lives in Jabalia, northeast of Gaza, according to the limited information sourced from Israel. His house was bombed several times, in 2008, 2012, 2014, and in the current war in Gaza.
In the 2014 war, he announced the kidnapping of Israeli soldier Shaul Aron in the midst of ground confrontations.
Palestinians at that time took to the streets in the West Bank in spontaneous marches, chanting for him and the “resistance.
“Abu Ubaida” previously had an account on Twitter (currently X), and another on Facebook, before they were closed. Today, he publishes his messages on the official Al-Qassam website and uses the Telegram application and the “Al-Aqsa” channel affiliated with Hamas to broadcast his videos, which are republished by various satellite channels and media outlets.
Israel claims to know the true identity of the Hamas spokesperson. Israeli army spokesman Avichay Adraee said that the masked person, Hudhayfah Kahlout, was hiding behind the keffiyeh, and his nickname was Abu Ubaida.
Adraee published a picture of Kahlout, describing him as a “liar and a coward.” Neither Hamas nor Al-Qassam commented on the information.
Before the 2014 war, Abu Ubaida presented a master’s thesis at the Islamic University from the Faculty of Fundamentals of Religion, under the title, “The Holy Land between Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.” Today, he is considered the spearhead of the “psychological war against Israel.”
