While the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF), who are on guard in Gaza, initially thought it was a normal encounter between troops and the Hamas militia, they soon realized that they had eliminated one of the top authorities in the terrorist group, Yahya Sinwar, a key conspirator behind the October 7 brutal attack in Israel, which killed at least 1,200.
Significantly, the killing of Hamas terrorist Sinwar was hailed by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who termed the development as the beginning of the end, and by US President Joe Biden, who described Sinwar's death as a "day of relief" and likened it to the aftermath of Osama Bin Laden's killing. However, it is pertinent to note that Sinwar's removal is expected to impact Hamas' leadership and operational capabilities.
Moreover, as further details about Yahya Sinwar’s killing continue to emerge, the IDF has released drone footage from Rafah, capturing the final moments of the Hamas chief before he was killed.
How did the IDF eliminate Yahya Sinwar?
Speaking about the details of the operation, a senior IDF official mentioned that a unit from its 828th Bislamach Brigade was patrolling Tal al-Sultan, an area of Rafah, on Wednesday when they spotted three terrorists seeking safer hideouts. The troops immediately engaged in an attack and eliminated the three.
The senior IDF official stated that, at this stage, nothing seemed particularly significant about the firefight that had just broken out, as soldiers did not return to the scene until Thursday morning. It was then, upon checking the deceased, that one of the bodies was found to bear a striking resemblance to the Hamas leader.
Over concerns that the body might have been booby-trapped, only a part of a finger was removed from the deceased, who bore a striking resemblance to Sinwar, and was sent to Israel for testing.
His body was later extracted and brought to Israel after the area was secured.
"The forces didn't know he was there, but we continued to operate," Daniel Hagari, the IDF's spokesman, said. "The man since identified as Sinwar ran alone into one of the buildings and was killed after being located by a drone," he further stated,
Significantly, the IDF chief also mentioned, none of the hostages which Sinwar was believed to be using as human shields were present during the operation. He suggested either he (Sinwar) was trying to move unnoticed or had lost many of those protecting him at the time of operation.
Further, drone footage released by the Israeli military late on Thursday captured Sinwar's final moments before he was killed.The video appears to be shot from a drone flying through the open window of a almost debiliated building. It then approaches a man, later identified as Sinwar, with his head covered and his hand injured, sitting in an armchair on the first floor of a house littered with debris.
The man, who seems to be injured, then throws what appears to be a stick at the drone, and the video ends.
READ MORE | US calls Yahya Sinwar's death 'day of relief,' likens it to aftermath of Osama Bin Laden's killing
READ MORE | 'It's beginning of end...': Netanyahu on Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar's killing
