IDF Details Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar's Final Moments

The Israeli military has released details surrounding the killing of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, two years after the event, which occurred on October 16, 2024, in the Tel Sultan neighborhood of Rafah. According to the IDF, Sinwar was initially wounded in the hand by gunfire from a battalion commander during an encounter. He then fled into a building, where he was later killed after forces identified bloodstains and faced grenade attacks.

Weeks prior to the incident, the Gaza Division assumed responsibility for the Rafah area. Intelligence indicated the presence of senior Hamas figures in specific zones, leading to operations by the Nahal and Bislamach brigades. On the day of the killing, an observation unit spotted three militants approximately 300 meters from a large engineering operation. Two were carrying blankets, and the third wore a vest. A battalion commander opened fire, hitting one of the militants, later identified as Sinwar, in the hand.

As tanks and drones were deployed to secure the area, a paratrooper company entered a building where Sinwar had fled. A platoon commander discovered a pool of blood, signaling a wounded militant was nearby. Shortly after, two grenades were thrown at the soldiers, one of which exploded. Forces responded with tank fire, machine guns, and small arms, resulting in Sinwar's death, though his identity was not immediately confirmed.

His body was identified the following morning after a drone confirmed a corpse inside the building the previous evening. Alongside the operational details, the IDF also released excerpts from a handwritten document attributed to Sinwar, previously collected in Gaza. This document reportedly details plans for the October 7th attack, emphasizing the intentional documentation and rapid dissemination of horrific images of killings and destruction to instill terror.

The document includes instructions to plan for events that would generate "horror images," such as massive explosions and burning neighborhoods, and explicitly mentions organizing actions to set entire neighborhoods and kibbutzim ablaze. Sinwar, who was released from Israeli prison, played a significant role in Hamas's military buildup and operational planning, becoming the organization's leader in Gaza in 2017 and a key figure behind the October 7th attack. The IDF stated that Sinwar's death marked a turning point for Hamas, impacting its decision-making, coordination, operational patterns, leadership, command capabilities, and organizational cohesion.