Gaza militia leader Yasser Abu Shabab has died in a hospital in southern Israel from wounds sustained in the strip, Israeli media reported on Thursday.
Mr Abu Shabab had been injured in an “internal clash” in southern Gaza, the Times of Israel reported, quoting Israeli defence sources.
His militia, known as the Abu Shabab Popular Forces, operated in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, and had worked with Israel against common foe Hamas.
There has been no official comment from Mr Abu Shabab’s militia or from Israeli authorities.
Israel's army-run radio, also citing a security source, said he had died in Soroka hospital in southern Israel of unspecified wounds. But the hospital denied he had been admitted there.
The Popular Forces were one of several local militias who gained influence at the height of Israel's war in Gaza, filling a power vacuum as Hamas operatives were scattered or killed. The militias typically patrolled neighbourhoods, claimed to be protecting “humanitarian zones” or clashed with fighters from Hamas.
Hamas had accused Mr Abu Shabab and his gang of looting UN aid lorries, with Israel's supp
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