Hamdi Insio, a Palestinian guerrilla fighter, was born in 1973 and grew up in the Beach Camp. He was arrested by the occupation and the Palestinian Authority. He carried out the first sea guerrilla operation at the end of 2000, when he drove a boat loaded with explosives and blew himself up near the Israeli boats.
Birth and upbringing
Hamdi Arafat Insio was born in 1973 in Al-Shati Camp, to a family that was displaced from Hamama in 1948, and was known for its commitment and resistance to the Israeli occupation. He is one of 7 boys, including martyrs, persecuted, and detainees.
He grew up in Al-Shati Camp in the Gaza Strip in an atmosphere of religious commitment and attending seminars on learning and the Holy Qur’an, and he was known among his peers for his good morals.
Study and scientific training
He began his primary studies in the schools of Al-Shati camp, and completed middle and high school in the camp, before joining the Faculty of Fundamentals of Religion at the Islamic University in the Strip, but he was unable to complete his studies because he was busy providing a living for his family.
The jihadist experience
He joined the ranks of the Islamic Student Bloc during his university studies, and sought to include his colleagues and those he knew, and was present in the preaching activity in the mosque, interested in raising young people on the teachings of religion, moral lessons, and others.
With the beginning of the Stone Intifada, he joined the ranks of the Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) and was one of its activists in the Western Mosque of the Beach Camp. His role also emerged in confronting the occupation patrols with stones along with his people. He was arrested in 1991 and charged with throwing stones at the occupation patrols, but he was released after two months.
At the beginning of the year 2000, he planned 6 martyrdom operations in the 48 regions, and led a cell to carry them out, but his movement with his friends was monitored, the house was besieged, and a number of them were martyred, and Hamdi was able to escape to Nablus, where he was arrested by the Palestinian Preventive Security Forces, and transferred to Gaza prisons.
He remained in prison for 10 months, until he was released on October 23, 2000 and returned to the ranks of the resistance again.
The first naval commando operation
On November 7, 2000, two weeks after his release from prison, Hamdi carried out the first maritime commando operation. He boarded a boat loaded with 20 kilograms of highly explosive TNT, and sailed from the beach camp at night, heading to the Israeli military naval boats that Surrounded by the sea.
When he approached one of the Israeli “Wasp” boats and was within walking distance of it, he blew himself up, turning the Israeli boat into pieces with everyone in it, according to a statement issued by the Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas.
The Israeli occupation announced that one of its boats was attacked by a mine boat that was detonated remotely.
Al-Qassam statement
A month and a few days after this operation, on December 10, 2000, the Al-Qassam Brigades issued a military statement adopting the “martyrdom operation,” which it described as qualitative, and explained that the delay in announcing its adoption “was for security reasons.”