Netanyahu confirms Hamas chief Sinwar was killed by Israeli military

Hamas’s Gaza chief Mohammed Sinwar, who is the brother of the group’s deceased leader Yahya Sinwar, has been killed by the Israeli military, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said, according to the BBC via Reuters on May 28th.

A tank shell killed Yahya Sinwar in October 2024 as he sheltered in a building in Rafah City. An early autopsy revealed he hadn’t eaten for three days before his death. It also showed that he stayed alive for hours after being shot in the head,  The New Arab reported on February 21st.

The Israeli military’s examination of Yahya Sinwar’s body showed no indication of drug use. Forensic analysis confirmed the absence of narcotics in his bloodstream, according to Israeli media. The tests did detect significant caffeine consumption prior to his death in October.

A huge Israeli strike targeted the Gaza chief on May 13th in the area surrounding the European Hospital and its courtyard in Khan Younis. According to Israel’s military this destroyed the “underground infrastructure” of Hamas.

A total of 28 people died according to Gaza’s Hamas-administered Civil Defence agency. Mohammed Sinwar, 49, entered Hamas soon after it was formed in the late 1980s.

Officials believed he helped plan a 2006 cross-border raid that captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Sergeant Shalit gained freedom after five years in detention, in return for over 1,000 Palestinian detainees, such as Yahya Sinwar.

In 2022, Mohammed Sinwar told Qatar’s Al Jazeera TV, that when Hamas warns Israel “we know how to specify the location that hurts the occupation and how to press them,” The Independent reported on May 28th.

Mohammed Sinwar reportedly had strong ties with Hamas’s former military leader Mohammed Deif. Sinwar took part in planning the October 7th 2023 assault.

Netanyahu declared Sinwar’s death during a special Israeli parliament debate on May 27th. The opposition called the debate to address what it labelled “the government’s complete failure to achieve the war’s goals: the return of all the hostages and defeating Hamas.”

According to France 24 on May 28th, Netanyahu, speaking to parliament, named Sinwar among Hamas leaders Israel killed. Netanyahu declared “We have killed ten of thousands of terrorists. We killed [Mohammed] Deif, [Ismail] Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Sinwar.”

BBC via Reuters, France 24, The Independent, The New Arab