IDF: Hamas terror chief Yahya Sinwar is dead
The architect of the Oct. 7, 2023, massacre was one of three terrorists killed following a random encounter with Israeli forces.
Israel Defense Forces soldiers killed Hamas terror master Yahya Sinwar in a firefight in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, the military confirmed in a press release on Thursday night.
Sinwar “was eliminated after hiding for the past year behind the civilian population of Gaza, both above and below ground in Hamas tunnels in the Gaza Strip,” the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) stated.
According to the announcement, increased military operations in southern Gaza in recent weeks “restricted Yahya Sinwar’s operational movement as he was pursued by the forces and led to his elimination.
“After completing the process of identifying the body, it can be confirmed that Yahya Sinwar was eliminated,” the statement to the press concluded.
The Israel Police positively identified the corpse of Sinwar, who was killed on Wednesday. The Hamas leader was reportedly identified by his teeth.
Netanyahu was set to address the nation at 8:30 p.m. local time.
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar holds the son of an Al-Qassam Brigades terrorist who was killed in recent fighting with Israel, during a rally in Gaza City, May 24, 2021.
The Israel Defense Forces said earlier Thursday that it was investigating whether Sinwar was one of three terrorists killed by Israeli soldiers in the Palestinian enclave.
According to initial reports, the Hamas leader was killed by tank fire called in by IDF soldiers who had identified armed terrorists in a building.
When the soldiers subsequently searched the premises, they discovered that one of the bodies bore a striking resemblance to Sinwar.
Yahya Sinwar's body taken out of the rubble on Oct. 17, 2024
“We will reach every terrorist and eliminate them,” Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant tweeted on Thursday.
“You will pursue your enemies, and they will fall before you by the sword,” added Gallant, quoting Leviticus 26:7.
The X post included pictures of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah, who was assassinated in an IDF strike in Beirut last month, and former Hamas “military”/Al-Qassam Brigades chief Mohammed Deif, who was killed in an Israeli strike in southern Gaza’s Khan Yunis in July.
Later on Thursday, IDF Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Herzi Halevi and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) head Ronen Bar held a situation assessment.
The military said on Thursday that while no hostages were found in the building where the three terrorists were killed, “forces continue to operate with the necessary caution in the area.”
Netanyahu instructed the IDF to inform hostage families that there was no indication any hostages were hurt during the battle.
Efrat Machikawa, the niece of captive Gadi Moses, told JNS on Thursday, “I hope all Israelis including the government will remain modest and humble. While this is a military achievement, the most important thing remains saving lives, and by that I mean returning the hostages.”
While the Hamas leader’s elimination is “very important, I remain extremely concerned about [the hostages’] fate. They are in my head and my heart every second since Oct. 7. They are the only ones I think about,” Machikawa added.
Opposition leader Yair Lapid called on the Netanyahu government to “take advantage of the opportunity for a decisive move regarding the hostages.
“Strive for a comprehensive deal and offer monetary rewards and safe passage to anyone who brings captives to our forces,” he tweeted.
Qatari officials involved in indirect negotiations between Israel and Hamas have told family members of hostages that Sinwar had surrounded himself with captives.
Channel 12 reported that Sinwar had been hiding with the six hostages who were executed and then recovered by the IDF on Aug. 31. The hostages were identified as Hersh Goldberg-Polin, 23, Eden Yerushalmi, 24, Almog Sarusi, 25, Alexander Lobanov, 32, Carmel Gat, 40, and Master Sgt. Ori Danino, 25.
Hamas still holds 101 hostages, including 97 of the 251 taken during the Palestinian terror group’s massacre of some 1,200 people in the northwestern Negev just over a year ago.
“We need to thank the IDF if Sinwar is indeed dead. It also means that there is a lot of anxiety regarding the fate of the 101 hostages,” Ruby Chen, the father of captive Itay Chen, told JNS on Thursday. “Now is the time to leverage this military action for a deal to get them out.
“We received an update from IDF sources confirming that there were no hostages in the vicinity with regards to the incident,” he continued. “My message is that now is the time to get a deal done and put an end to all of this.”
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in a terror tunnel underneath the southern Gaza Strip city of Khan Yunis, Oct. 10, 2023.
Earlier this month, Sinwar reportedly renewed contacts with mediators in Qatar to find out the chances that he could receive immunity in any ceasefire-for-hostages-and-terrorists-release deal.
Similarly, in August, Ynet reported that Sinwar wanted protection against the possibility of an Israeli assassination. “Sinwar insists on guarantees for his safety and life” a senior Egyptian official said.
Two threats from Qatar led to Sinwar’s emergence from a long silence, according to Channel 12.
Sinwar was convicted on multiple murder counts by an Israeli court and sentenced to five life sentences, which he was supposed to serve until his death. However, in October 2011, he was released from prison—having served 22 years—as part of the Gilad Shalit prisoner exchange.
Following his release, Sinwar gained power and popularity within Hamas, becoming its Gaza leader in 2017 by defeating Ismail Haniyeh in a vote.
In August, Sinwar was chosen to lead Hamas’s so-called political bureau, replacing Haniyeh, who was assassinated in Tehran on July 31.
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President Biden’s statement on the death of Yahya Sinwar
“Early this morning, Israeli authorities informed my national security team that a mission they conducted in Gaza likely killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar. DNA tests have now confirmed that Sinwar is dead. This is a good day for Israel, for the United States, and for the world.
As the leader of the terrorist group Hamas, Sinwar was responsible for the deaths of thousands of Israelis, Palestinians, Americans, and citizens from over 30 countries. He was the mastermind of the October 7th massacres, rapes, and kidnappings. It was on his orders that Hamas terrorists invaded Israel to intentionally—and with unspeakable savagery—kill and massacre civilians, a Holocaust survivor, children in front of their parents, and parents in front of their children.
Over 1,200 people were killed on that day, the deadliest day for Jews since the Holocaust, including 46 Americans. More than 250 were taken hostage, with 101 still missing. That number includes seven Americans, four of whom are believed to still be alive and held by Hamas terrorists. Sinwar is the man most responsible for this, and for so much of what followed.
Shortly after the October 7 massacres, I directed Special Operations personnel and our intelligence professionals to work side-by-side with their Israeli counterparts to help locate and track Sinwar and other Hamas leaders hiding in Gaza.
With our intelligence help, the IDF relentlessly pursued Hamas’s leaders, flushing them out of their hiding places and forcing them onto the run. There has rarely been a military campaign like this, with Hamas leaders living and moving through hundreds of miles of tunnels, organized in multiple stories underground, determined to protect themselves with no care for the civilians suffering above ground. Today, however, proves once again that no terrorists anywhere in the world can escape justice, no matter how long it takes.
To my Israeli friends, this is no doubt a day of relief and reminiscence, similar to the scenes witnessed throughout the United States after President Obama ordered the raid to kill Osama Bin Laden in 2011.
Israel has had every right to eliminate the leadership and military structure of Hamas. Hamas is no longer capable of carrying out another October 7.
I will be speaking soon with Prime Minister Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to congratulate them, to discuss the pathway for bringing the hostages home to their families, and for ending this war once and for all, which has caused so much devastation to innocent people.
There is now the opportunity for a ‘day after’ in Gaza without Hamas in power, and for a political settlement that provides a better future for Israelis and Palestinians alike. Yahya Sinwar was an insurmountable obstacle to achieving all of those goals. That obstacle no longer exists. But much work remains before us.”
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