Three sons of the leader of Hamas have been killed in an Israeli airstrike in the Gaza Strip, relatives and official Hamas media said.

Ismail Haniyeh’s sons Hazem, Ameer and Mohammed were killed with family members in the strike near the Shati refugee camp in Gaza City.

Ismail Haniyeh, who now lives in exile in Qatar, is originally from Shati.

The deaths were confirmed by Hamas’s Al-Aqsa TV station as well as Haniyeh family members on social media.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, which is based in Qatar, after the strike, Haniyeh said: “Through the blood of the martyrs and the pain of the injured, we create hope, we create the future, we create independence and freedom for our people and our nation.

“There is no doubt that this criminal enemy is driven by the spirit of revenge and the spirit of murder and bloodshed, and it does not observe any standards or laws,” he said.

“We’ve seen it violate everything on the land of Gaza. There is a war of ethnic cleansing and genocide. There is mass displacement.

“The enemy believes that by targeting the families of the leaders, it will push them to give up the demands of our people. Anyone who believes that targeting my sons will push Hamas to change its position is delusional.”

Dozens of his relatives have been killed in the war so far.

Haniyeh told the news outlet that his children were targeted in a camp in northern Gaza while visiting relatives for Eid.

The brothers were travelling with family members in a single vehicle targeted by an Israeli drone, Al-Aqsa TV said. It said  six people were killed, including a daughter of Hazem Haniyeh, and a son and daughter of Ameer.

There was no immediate comment from the Israeli army.