Israel has confirmed the death of Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar in a recent air strike in one of the most significant operations of the war.
In a statement this afternoon, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced that the attack had been successful and that the terror leader had been eliminated.
Sinwar, who took over control of the group’s military wing last October after his brother Yahya was killed by an IDF drone, was the target of an IDF air strike on the European Hospital in Khan Younis on May 13.
Reports suggest that Sinwar was meeting with other Hamas commanders in a tunnel underneath the hospital compound to discuss ceasefire negotiations.
According to the Wall Street Journal, the meeting involved a number of senior militants, including Rafah brigade commander Mohammad Shabana, and violated the groups’ own security protocols.
Sources told the outlet that terrorists recovered his body in the subsequent days and buried him, with a plan to move him to a permanent grave at the end of the war.
Israel had, until now, declined to confirm the reports but Channel 12 reported that Netanyahu made the official announcement during a press briefing. It is not clear whether Shabana was also killed.
Sinwar’s death leaves Hamas without a formal leader in Gaza and, with no de facto successor apparent, could spark chaos within the group, which was largely decentralised before Yahya took over in 2017.
The Journal’s report suggest that it may also present an opportunity for Hamas’ political leadership, which is based in Qatar, to reassert control.
The two factions have become increasingly divided over the course of the war, with the Doha-based contingent understood to be far more receptive to compromise in ceasefire negotiations than their militant counterparts in Gaza.
