He was the manager of the only Christian bookstore in the Gaza Strip called The Teacher's Bookshop as well as the director of the Protestant Holy Bible Society.
[2] Ayyad was the manager of The Teacher's Bookshop (Arabic: مكتبة المعلمين), established in 1998 by the Palestinian Bible Society, an arm of the Gaza Baptist Church.
The bombing took place as part of a string of attacks that targeted internet cafés and music stores on the same day, suspected to have been carried out by an Islamist group called the Sword of Islam.
According to witnesses and security officials, Ayyad had been driven a few blocks away from the store by his abductors and subsequently beaten with clubs and rifle butts by three gunmen who accused him of trying to spread Christianity.
Many Christians left Gaza due to the religious tensions, in addition to economic sanctions imposed by Israel after the Hamas takeover.
Hamas deputy Ismail Haniyeh expressed his disapproval of the killing and affirmed that the Islamist movement “would not allow anyone to sabotage” relationships between Muslims and Christians.
Gaza's Interior Ministry released a statement affirming that the crime would not go unpunished and pledged to hold those responsible for Ayyad's murder accountable for their actions.
[2] Director of the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights Raji Sourani condemned the killing, stating that the "ugly act" had no support from any religious group in Gaza.