A screenshot from a distributed video reveals what the Israeli army says is lately slain Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar strolling via a tunnel earlier than the October 7 assaults, on this screenshot obtained by Reuters, revealed on October 19, 2024. | Photograph credit score: Reuters
The Israeli army on Saturday (Oct. 19, 2024) launched photos it mentioned confirmed Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar making ready for an prolonged keep underground in Gaza hours earlier than the Palestinian group launched its Sept. 7 assault. October.
Sinwar, then the highest Hamas determine within the Gaza Strip, is accused of masterminding final yr’s unprecedented assault that sparked the continued battle. He was killed by Israeli forces earlier this week.
Footage launched by the Israeli army confirmed Sinwar along with his spouse and kids in a tunnel that military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari mentioned was beneath the household dwelling in Khan Yunis.
“Sinwar and his members of the family will be seen escaping to an underground complicated beneath his dwelling on the night time of October 6, simply hours earlier than the brutal bloodbath,” Hagari mentioned in a televised briefing as he confirmed the grainy footage.
Sinwar, wearing a easy T-shirt, is seen strolling via the tunnel along with his two youngsters and his spouse.
“They’re alone for hours. Sinwar and his son go up and down, equipping themselves with plates of meals, water, pillows, a plasma display screen, mattresses and different merchandise for a protracted keep,” Hagari mentioned.
The spokesperson confirmed photos of the underground facility that had bogs, showers and a kitchen. He mentioned meals, money and a few paperwork have been additionally discovered there.
The discharge of the video comes days after Sinwar was killed by troops within the southern Gaza metropolis of Rafah in a shootout that ended with the Hamas chief cornered and alone in a destroyed constructing.
Drone footage, additionally launched by the Israeli army after his demise, confirmed an apparently injured Sinwar throwing an object on the drone in his ultimate moments.
The military additionally shared footage displaying an Israeli tank firing on the constructing the place Sinwar was mentioned to be positioned.
‘Underground fortress’
He New York Occasions reported that an Israeli post-mortem discovered that Sinwar was killed by a gunshot to the top.
“Sinwar constructed an underground fortress in his hometown of Khan Yunis. There he hid and continued to launch the assault,” Hagari mentioned in his Saturday briefing.
Israeli forces got here near him a number of instances through the battle, however he managed to flee, Hagari mentioned.
“For the overwhelming majority of the time Sinwar hid underground between Khan Yunis and Rafah,” he mentioned of the 2 principal cities in southern Gaza.
Israel had recognized Sinwar’s ultimate hideout after the army discovered “his DNA pattern on a handkerchief that he blew his nostril on,” Hagari mentioned.
Hamas dismissed as “blatant lies” Mr. Hagari’s feedback suggesting that Sinwar had gone into hiding and prioritized his household’s well-being over that of different Gazans.
“Commander Yahya Sinwar was martyred after heroically collaborating within the battle, having led the biggest battle within the historical past of our Palestinian individuals,” a Hamas assertion mentioned.
In accordance with the military, an Israeli patrol chanced upon Sinwar and two different militants on Wednesday, and whereas they have been being chased by troopers, Sinwar grew to become separated from the opposite two.
The military mentioned a tank later fired on the constructing the place Sinwar was taking shelter.
Photographs launched by the army shortly after Sinwar’s demise was introduced Thursday confirmed him lined in mud, sitting in an armchair and searching towards a drone coming into the constructing, a lot of it in ruins.
Footage confirmed Sinwar alone, with one hand severely injured and his head lined with a conventional scarf, throwing a stick on the approaching drone.
“That is really the primary time that Sinwar, who had been hiding underground for a yr, encountered the IDF (military) forces in Gaza and that is additionally the time when he was eradicated,” Hagari mentioned on Saturday. .
“Sinwar lived and behaved like a wished terrorist.”
The Hamas chief, who only a few months in the past changed his assassinated predecessor Ismail Haniyeh, had not been seen in public all through the battle.
Printed – October 20, 2024 11:07 am IST
