| Follow-up to this story from yesterday. |
- Israeli forces in Gaza killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the architect of the Oct. 7, 2023, terrorist attacks, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced.
- In an address today, Vice President Kamala Harris said Sinwar's death "gives us an opportunity to finally end the war in Gaza."
- Sinwar, who was born in a refugee camp and spent years in an Israeli prison before he rose to the top of the Iran-backed militant group, was described as a ''dead man walking'' by the Israeli military in the days after the Oct. 7 attacks.
- After Sinwar's body was found and before he was definitively identified, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant wrote on X: "'You will pursue your enemies and they will fall before you by the sword.' — Leviticus 26. Our enemies cannot hide. We will pursue and eliminate them.''
- Hostages' families have called on the Israeli government to use Sinwar's death to negotiate for their relatives' release, while Palestinians are voicing hope that it may bring an end to the war.
8:24 PM EDT
A drone identified Sinwar, IDF says
Israeli forces identified three Hamas militants moving from house to house yesterday when Sinwar fled into a building on his own, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said in a briefing today.
The military sent in a drone that identified a masked man with a wounded hand, who has since been identified as Sinwar, before he threw a wooden plank at the drone, Hagari said. A video from the drone released by the IDF shows a man sitting down in a destroyed building, but his face is entirely covered, and he does not turn his face to the camera.
“We found him wearing a vest, carrying a gun, and with 40,000 shekels,” Hagari said. “He was on the run, fleeing, and our forces eliminated him.”
7:43 PM EDT
Death of Sinwar won't affect the conditions of Hamas' demands, Gazan says
While Sinwar's death may give Netanyahu a "bonus" in his political standing, Thabaat El-Moaar is unconvinced it will change Hamas' demands.
El-Mooar, a writer and political analyst who spoke to NBC News in Khan Younis, said Sinwar's is just one of a long list of assassinations that have not stopped the "resistance." El-Moaar does not believe that changes Hamas' standing or forces a surrender.
"According to Netanyahu, he has accomplished achievements on the ground," he said. "These achievements indeed satisfied Netanyahu, but it won’t stop the resistance."
With Sinwar dead, there is no more justification for the war, said El-Moaar, who called for a deal to end the war and release the hostages.
5:40 PM EDT
Sinwar's killing could mark 'new phase' for Hamas, expert says
Sinwar's death is "significant for Israel's government ... at the very least in terms of it being a political win, with the commemoration of the Oct. 7 attack only having just passed," Mahdi Ghuloom, a regional security analyst at Le Beck International, told NBC News.
In an email before Israel confirmed it had killed Sinwar, Ghuloom said the development could "present a window of opportunity for cease-fire talks to resume," adding: "Sinwar was reportedly a big barrier to such talks from succeeding."
"We are already seeing statements by Israeli hostage families calling on PM Netanyahu to grasp such an opportunity and secure a hostage release deal. Whether the Israeli government does seize this opportunity remains to be seen, as well as who may replace Sinwar," he said.
He said Sinwar's death could also "mark a new phase for Hamas" in its approach to the fight against Israeli forces.
5:17 PM EDT
Sinwar and two others opened fire on Israeli troops, IDF says
Intelligence tipped off the IDF that Hamas leadership was near the Rafah area, which led to weeks of operations in southern Gaza, IDF spokesperson Doron Spielman told MSNBC.
The area the leaders could move in was restricted, which Spielman said troops hoped would force them to make a mistake. Sinwar eventually fell into the trap when he and two others started firing on IDF soldiers, he said.
"The Israeli troops returned fire — also with a tank mortar shell — the mortar shell hit the building, killing Sinwar and the other terrorists," Spielman said.
4:09 PM EDT
Israel dealt a 'lethal blow' to Hamas by killing Sinwar, researcher says
Hamas may be forced to accept defeat now that Israel has dealt it a "lethal blow" in killing Sinwar, researcher Burcu Ozcelik told NBC News.
Ozcelik, who worked at the Royal United Services Institute think tank in London, described Sinwar as a "cult of personality" leader whom his followers regarded as “near invincible.”
"With Sinwar, an intractable and non-compromising Hamas leader, now gone, it may be possible for Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, alongside regional states, to begin planning for the ‘day after’ scenario in Gaza," Ozcelik said.
The remaining question is whether that will mean an end to the military campaign in Gaza, which will have to consider Hamas' remaining power and the status of the remaining hostages.
"If the hostages can be returned safely, this will undoubtedly be a major victory for the IDF and Netanyahu, whose legacy will now include the killing of the architect of the October 7th attack," Ozcelik said.
1:20 PM EDT
Sinwar's death a message to others to 'surrender,' defense minister says
Israel has brought justice to its citizens by killing Sinwar, the man who orchestrated the Oct. 7 terror attack that killed 1,200 people last year, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant said in an address today.
“Sinwar died while beaten, persecuted and on the run — he didn’t die as a commander, but as someone who only cared for himself," Gallant said.
The defense minister noted that Sinwar is the latest in a string of assassinations of both Hamas and Hezbollah leadership in recent months. He called it a "clear message" to the residents of Gaza and the rest of Hamas' militants.
"Go out with the hostages, free them, and surrender," Gallant said.
| Courtesy of Frank G: |
[NY Post] At least this cowardly POS knew his exit to hell was coming. Vids/pics at link
An Israeli drone captured Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar’s last minutes alive — as the Oct. 7 mastermind swung a piece of wood in a futile attempt to take out the device before he was killed, officials said.
Shocking footage shows the moment a drone is deployed to check a building in Rafah that a group of IDF soldiers hit on Thursday.
An injured Sinwar, who had his face covered, could be seen sitting alone on a couch in the destroyed building, with the IDF soldiers unaware that they were seeing the very man they had been hunting for since he ordered the Oct. 7, 2023 terrorist attack on the Jewish state.
When Sinwar finally notices the drone hovering just a few feet from him, he struggles to fling an object at the UAV in a last ditch effort to keep his whereabouts hidden.
The soldiers then ordered a second strike on the building, killing Sinwar and two other Hamas terrorists who were traveling with him.
Yahya Sinwar's Bodyguard was a UNRWA ‘teacher’
[Insty]
Hi @antonioguterres 👋
— Dr. Eli David (@DrEliDavid) October 17, 2024
This is the ID carried by Sinwar's bodyguard 👇
An "UNRWA 🇺🇳 Teacher".
Any comments? pic.twitter.com/TkZ0A7bvRP
| Courtesy of Fred, the Times of Israel adds: |
The passport is in the name of Rafah native Hani Zourob.
Kan’s news hound says Zourob has clarified that he is in Egypt and that UNRWA says he crossed out of Gazoo
...Hellhole adjunct to Israel and Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, inhabited by Gazooks. The place was acquired in the wake of the 1967 War and then presented to Paleostinian control in 2006 by Ariel Sharon, who had entered his dotage. It is currently ruled with a rusty iron fist by Hamas with about the living conditions you'd expect. It periodically attacks the Hated Zionist Entity whenever Iran needs a ruckus created or the hard boyz get bored, getting thumped by the IDF in return. The ruling turbans then wave the bloody shirt and holler loudly about
oppressionand
disproportionate response...
via Rafah in April.
| Was he really the bodyguard, or was Mr. Yahya just carrying the ID card in a clever but vain attempt to fool the IDF hunters? More from the Times of Israel: |
The IDF said the firefight on Wednesday took place in the same area as the six hostages were held and killed.
It also said that the IDF had checked when the six hostages’ bodies were recovered whether terrorists killed in the area had included Sinwar. This was found not to be the case, but indications, including DNA evidence, were found at the time that Sinwar had been in the area.
Channel 12 said the body suspected to be that of Sinwar was not immediately brought back to Israel because the area where it was found was heavily booby-trapped. The body also had a military vest carrying grenades.
Related:
Yahya Sinwar 10/17/2024 *Unconfirmed reports* Yahya Sinwar Dead UPDATE: ULULULU! The witch is definitely dead!
Yahya Sinwar 10/14/2024 Cafe in Oakland, CA offer 'Sweet Sinwar' $10 tea + other terror support
Yahya Sinwar 10/13/2024 Reports: Hamas delayed Oct. 7 attack to enlist Iran, Hezbollah; plotted 9/11-style bombing
Yahya Sinwar 10/17/2024 *Unconfirmed reports* Yahya Sinwar Dead UPDATE: ULULULU! The witch is definitely dead!
Yahya Sinwar 10/14/2024 Cafe in Oakland, CA offer 'Sweet Sinwar' $10 tea + other terror support
Yahya Sinwar 10/13/2024 Reports: Hamas delayed Oct. 7 attack to enlist Iran, Hezbollah; plotted 9/11-style bombing
