IDF Releases Letter from Yahya Sinwar's 10-Year-Old Son

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released a letter written by Ibrahim Sinwar, the 10-year-old son of former Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, at the beginning of the war. The letter was discovered in October 2024 in a structure in Rafah where Yahya Sinwar was later killed. Ibrahim, who is currently in Turkey, addressed the letter to his father, expressing his longing and desire to see him victorious. He wrote, "I wish I could grow up, hold a Kalashnikov, and shoot Jews." The letter also included drawings of tanks and Hebrew inscriptions of weapons and military border installations. Ibrahim also mentioned making toy guns and tanks from paper and cardboard, and wished for the war to end so his father could be safe.

According to intelligence reports, Yahya Sinwar's widow, Samar Muhammad Abu Zammar, crossed into Egypt with their children using a forged passport early in the war and later moved to Turkey, where she remarried. Previously, footage emerged showing her walking in a Hamas tunnel shortly before the October 7th attack.

Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas and architect of the October 7th attack, was killed on October 16, 2024, in the Tel al-Sultan area of Rafah. He was eliminated during an encounter with an IDF force that identified suspects in a building and opened fire. Sinwar was wounded during the exchange and barricaded himself alone on the second floor. Drone footage released afterward showed his final moments, wounded and defeated, before a tank shell and gunfire led to his death. His body was transferred to Israel the following day, and security officials confirmed his death through DNA, fingerprints, and dental records. He was found with a weapon, grenades, cash, and documents, and a forensic report determined the cause of death was a bullet wound to the head.