'Only a matter of time...': Israel PM Netanyahu says IDF closing in on Hamas founder Yahya Sinwar

As fighting continues to rage in Gaza, Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Thursday said that it was closing in on one of the Hamas founders Yahya Sinwar, who is believed to be the mastermind of the 7 October attacks.

עדכון ממני אליכם >> pic.twitter.com/gzKsAE8Ekn

— Benjamin Netanyahu - בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) December 6, 2023

In a video statement posted on X, Netanyahu said that the IDF has surrounded Sinwar’s house and that it was “only a matter of time until they find him”. “Last night I said that our forces could go anywhere in the Gaza Strip. They are currently surrounding Sinwar’s house. His home is not his castle, and he can flee, but it is only a matter of time until we find him,” said Netanyahu who has vowed to “crush” Hamas. Meanwhile, IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that Sinwar is hiding underground but refused to divulge exact details about his whereabouts. “Sinwar is not above ground; he is underground,” IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said. “I don’t want to elaborate where and how and what we know in terms of intelligence. This is not the place to talk about such things in the media. Our job is to find Sinwar and kill him,” he added. Born in the Khan Younis refugee camp, 61-year-old Yahya Sinwar was elected as Hamas’ leader in Gaza in 2017. He rose to prominence as a ruthless enforcer, the head of the Al-Majd security apparatus which tracked, killed, and punished Palestinians accused of collaborating with Israel’s secret service before he was jailed. Sinwar was arrested in 1988 and given consecutive life sentences after being charged with organising the kidnapping and killing of two Israeli soldiers as well as the killing of four Palestinians. According to reports, he is leading negotiations for prisoner-hostage swaps and directing military operations along with Deif and another commander, possibly from bunkers beneath Gaza. A senior Israeli security official told reporters recently that Sinwar had wielded influence over talks mediated by Qatar that led to the ceasefire that ended last week after the release of more than 200 Palestinian prisoners by Israel in return for dozens of Israeli hostages held in Gaza. Since the war began, the Israeli forces have killed two members of the Hamas ruling politburo and associates of Sinwar. With inputs from agencies