NYT: Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar Killed While Fighting Together With His People in Gaza, No Hostages Found

For over a year, Israel’s security establishment, backed by the United States, dedicated vast resources and gathered mounds of intelligence in its hunt for Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader who was an architect of the Oct. 7 attacks.

But in the end, a unit of trainee squad commanders unexpectedly encountered Mr. Sinwar while on an operation in southern Gaza, according to four Israeli defense officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the matter.

The unit was on patrol in southern Gaza on Wednesday when the Israeli soldiers came upon a small group of fighters, the officials said. The soldiers — backed by drones — engaged in a firefight, and three Palestinian militants were killed.

During the battle, Israeli fire brought down part of a building where the militants had taken cover, two officials said. As the dust cleared and they began searching the building, the Israeli soldiers noticed that one of the bodies bore a shocking resemblance to the Hamas leader, the three officials said.

It was a seemingly unlikely place to find him. Israeli and U.S. intelligence had long assessed that Mr. Sinwar — fearful for his own safety — had been hiding deep underground, surrounding himself with Israeli hostages to avoid assassination.

[...] The troops, one of the officials said, were also concerned that there might be hostages in the area as well, but none were found with the fighters.

WATCH: Drone footage of Sinwar's final moments pic.twitter.com/MMkV23LEvj

— i24NEWS English (@i24NEWS_EN) October 17, 2024

"The greatest gift the enemy can give me is to assassinate me. I submit myself to martyrdom for God at his hands. I'm 59 years old, and I much prefer to be martyred by an F-16 or by rockets, than die of corona or a heart attack...I prefer to die a martyr" -Yahya Sinwar in 2021 https://t.co/U4iZQzb6nh

— Ali Abunimah (@AliAbunimah) October 17, 2024

"I say that the greatest gift the enemy and the occupation can give me, is to assassinate me."#YahyaSinvar pic.twitter.com/CxHqNvtOsF

— Iran Military (@IRIran_Military) October 18, 2024