Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Wednesday that the de facto leader of Hamas, Mohammed Sinwar, has been killed. Netanyahu mentioned the killing in a speech to Israel’s parliament as the U.S. seeks another temporary ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war.
During his speech, Netanyahu listed the names of top Hamas leaders killed during the war and included Sinwar. “We have killed ten of thousands of terrorists. We killed (Mohammed) Deif, (Ismail) Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and Mohammed Sinwar,” he said.
Netanyahu did not elaborate, and Israel’s military did not immediately issue any new statement on Sinwar’s apparent death.
Sinwar was the latest leader of Hamas — which the U.S. and Israel have designated as a terrorist group — to be killed by Israeli forces. His older brother Yahya Sinwar, a top target for the Israeli military who previously led the group, was killed in October. Deif, who led Hamas’ military wing, was killed by Israeli forces in July. Haniyeh, a former Hamas political leader, was assassinated in Iran last year, an incident Iran blamed on Israeli forces but Israel did not take responsibility for.
Since Yahya Sinwar’s death, Mohammed Sinwar had been widely described in Israeli and Arab media as one of Hamas’ top leaders in the Gaza Strip.
Israeli army/Handout via Reuters 
Top Hamas leaders based in Qatar didn’t pick Mohammed Sinwar as the group’s sole leader after his brother’s death, but militants in the Gaza Strip have largely followed him, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this year, citing Arab negotiators. The younger Sinwar — a longtime Hamas member — has helped lead the group as it recruits new fighters, replacing some of the thousands of Hamas terrorists Israel says it has killed, according to the newspaper.
“Mohammed Sinwar is managing everything,” retired Israeli Brig. Gen. Amir Avivi told the Journal.
Mohammed Sinwar’s reported death comes after nearly 20 months of war between Israel and Hamas, which began after Hamas-led militants launched an attack on southern Israel in October 2023, killing some 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and taking 251 as hostages back into Gaza.
At the White House, President Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff told reporters Wednesday he had “very good feelings” about getting to a temporary ceasefire and a long-term resolution to the conflict.
Reuters/Leah Millis 
A two-month ceasefire between the two sides ended in March after Israel resumed intense strikes on the Gaza Strip and enforced a blockade on all aid supplies entering the Palestinian territory, leading to widespread reports of shortages and hunger. Israel blames all the suffering in Gaza on Hamas, calling the blockade a tactic to pressure the terrorist group into releasing the 58 remaining hostages, although it is unclear how many are alive.
In recent weeks, Israeli officials have vowed to push ahead with the war to capture and control the entire Gaza Strip and to dismantle Hamas, though Israel has allowed limited aid to enter Gaza this week.
Over 54,000 people have been killed in Gaza since the Israeli offensive began more than a year and a half ago, according to the territory’s Hamas-run health ministry, which does not distinguish between civilian and combatant casualties.
Earlier this month, Hamas released Eden Alexander, believed to have been the last living American citizen held hostage in Gaza.
The families of the remaining hostages have led large protests demanding that Netanyahu make a deal to bring their loved ones home and end the war. In a statement shared by his office following the release of Alexander, Netanyahu insisted that while there could be a temporary ceasefire to allow for more hostages to be freed, there is “no way we will stop the war … we’re going to the end.”
contributed to this report.
hamas-chief-mohammed-sinwar-has-been-killed-israels-netanyahu-says
Leave a Reply