4 saat önce

Israel confirms Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar killed in Gaza strike

Sinwar was a target by Israel, with Tel Aviv accusing him of masterminding the October 7 cross-border attack.

AP

Yahya Sinwar was named the leader after the assassination of former leader Haniyeh/ Photo: AP

Hamas politburo chief Yahya Sinwar has been killed in Gaza, Israel's foreign minister and the country's army have confirmed.

"After completing the process of identifying the body, it can be confirmed that Yahya Sinwar was eliminated," the Israeli military said in a statement on Thursday.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz claimed Sinwar’s killing would "create the possibility to immediately release the hostages".

The confirmation came hours after two of Israel's broadcasters, KAN and N12 News cited Israeli officials as saying Sinwar was dead.

However, there was no official confirmation from Hamas.

The Israeli military earlier said it was checking the possibility that it killed Sinwar through a DNA test following an offensive in Gaza that it said had targeted three Palestinian resistance fighters.

Sinwar was named leader of Hamas following the assassination of former political leader Ismail Haniyeh in Iran's Tehran in July.

Sinwar was the most wanted Hamas leader by Israel, with Tel Aviv accusing him of masterminding the October 7 cross-border attack last year by the group which prompted Israel to launch a devastating military campaign in Gaza that has killed more than 45,000 people, according to local health authorities.

Ten months into the Israeli war, vast tracts of Gaza lie in ruins amid a crippling blockade of food, clean water and medicine.

The Israeli military said there were no signs that hostages had been present in the building where the three were killed.