Watch: Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar hours before October 7 attack on Israel

Sinwar was killed by the IDF during a military operation in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday.

New Delhi | Updated: October 20, 2024 10:50 PM IST

4 min read

A screengrab from a handout video shows what the Israeli Army says is recently killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar walking through a tunnel before the October 7 attacks, in this screengrab obtained by Reuters, released on October 19, 2024. (Photo: Reuters)

Days after Gaza-based Hamas militant group’s leader and the mastermind behind the October 7 attack on Israel, Yahya Sinwar, was killed by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), a video showing him and his family entering an underground tunnel in Gaza, hours before the October 7 attack took place, was released by the IDF on Saturday.

In a post on X (formerly Twitter), IDF spokesperson RAdm. Daniel Hagari, called the leader’s killing a “result of a year of operational and intelligence efforts.”

Sinwar was killed by the IDF during a military operation in the city of Rafah in southern Gaza Strip on Wednesday. After becoming the leader of Hamas following the assassination of former leader Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran last August, Sinwar was believed to be hiding in the extensive network of underground tunnels beneath Gaza.

“Killing Sinwar is the result of a year of operational and intelligence efforts to bring him and other Hamas leaders to justice. Sinwar has been eliminated, but our mission is not over,” Hagari said as the forces shared a video clip claiming that he had hid in an underground tunnel network, along with his family and equipments, a few hours before the October 7 attack on Israel took place.

Also Read | How Israeli military found and killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza

“Yahya Sinwar spent years planning the October 7 attack. Each step was planned to maximise harm to Israeli and Gazan civilians, and to minimise harm to himself and other terrorists,” Hagari claimed in the video, adding that Sinwar “always prioritised himself, his money, and Hamas terrorists over the people of Gaza.”

Hagari further alleged: “While hiding in the tunnels of Khan Younis, Sinwar ordered the October 7 attack to begin… He continued to hide underneath the people of Gaza. In Khan Younis, in February, our troops found supplies meant for a long stay in Sinwar’s underground [tunnel], including a lot of money, food, bags, books, documents, a shower and a kitchen. Then IDF operations in Khan Younis forced Sinwar to flee to Rafah.”

Describing IDF’s operations against Sinwar, the spokesperson said: “Last month, Sinwar’s DNA was found on a piece of tissue he used a few hundred metres from a tunnel where six Israeli hostages were brutally executed in Tal al Sultan, Rafah. Then, Sinwar fled yet again.”

“When Sinwar was running for his life and went above the ground, this was the first and last time that he encountered Israeli soldiers in a combat. Sinwar was eliminated by the IDF in Rafah last Wednesday,” he added.

Reactions to Yahya Sinwar’s final moments

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Given Hagari’s allegations, according to AP, the scene of Sinwar’s final moments, which are currently in circulation over social media, was one of victory for Israel, showing him as “broken and defeated”.

While in Israel, many celebrated the news of his death with soldiers handing out sweets, there were also protests from families of hostages and their supporters who want Israeli leaders to use the moment to bring the hostages home, AP report stated.

On the other hand, people in Palestine and Lebanon regarded the visual released as a “source of pride,” while remembering the leader with respect. In Khan Younis, his birthplace, mourners recited the funeral prayer in a bombed-out mosque for a Muslim when the body is missing, as Israel has kept Sinwar’s body. Dozens of men and children took part in the prayers, AP reported.

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