 "Is Yahya Sinwar dead? IDF's intelligence probes Hamas chief's sudden disappearance: Report")
Amid the ongoing Gaza crisis, Israel is reportedly investigating the possibility of the death of Hamas’s new Gaza-based leader Yahya Sinwar. Several Hebrew news outlets stated that Sinwar has been “incommunicado” for a relatively long time, sparking the speculations, The Times of Israel reported. However, the reports are not currently backed by any evidence, and neither Israeli authorities mentioned that any such probe is underway.
The reports suggested that the Israel Defence Forces (IDF) Military Intelligence Directorate is claiming that Sinwar was possibly killed in one of the IDF strikes in Gaza. But there isn’t sufficient non-circumstantial evidence to prove the claims and the Shin Bet agency is maintaining that Sinwar is alive.
Security officials cited by multiple news outlets suggested that there is the possibility that Sinwar died in the attack, but such assertions do not have a “real basis as of now.” According to The Times of Israel, some of the reports from local Israeli outlets quoted sources noting that the elusive Hamas chief — who has been hiding in tunnels below the Strip since Hamas’s October 7 onslaught — has previously gone temporarily off the radar.
IDF neither confirms nor denies
Another Israeli news outlet, Haaretz, pointed out that Israel in recent months has bombarded tunnels in areas where Sinwar is suspected to be hiding. When asked about the reports, the Israeli military maintained that they “have no information confirming or refuting the matter.”
Hence, it is not clear if Sinwar was hit in any of the strikes or if he could purposely be keeping a low profile. From the very beginning, Israel maintained that Sinwar was the mastermind of the Hamas’ October 7 attack. The Hamas leader, who is known to keep a low profile, succeeded the group’s political bureau head Ismail Haniyeh following his assassination in Tehran.
Sinwar was the brother of Muhammad Deif, who was killed in an Israeli strike in Gaza in July. Some of these reports have delved into the complex and secretive system of intermediaries and handwritten notes that Sinwar has allegedly been using to communicate from his hideouts. The last time he came out of “his tunnel” was when Israel and Hamas were negotiating a ceasefire deal which did not fall through.
Impact Shorts
More Shorts“It is all hopes and guesses, which are based on the fact Sinwar has been incommunicado in recent weeks,” an Israeli official told reporters. According to Haaretz, Sinwar was last spotted disappearing with his family inside Hamas’ vast underground tunnel network days after the October 7 attack, which killed 1,200 people in Israel.
With inputs from agencies.
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