Here’s what we know about the death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and the final moments of the ‘mastermind’ behind the October 7 attack

More than a year after Hamas’ devastating attacks on Israel on October 7, the country’s military said Thursday it had killed the man it considers the main architect of that cross-border massacre. militant group itself, which has suffered one blow after another in recent months.

The death of Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar could provide a rare opportunity to reach a ceasefire, US officials say – with Israel killing several other top Hamas commanders, including Ismail Haniyeh, the former political leader of the group, as well as leaders of the militant group Hezbollah in Lebanon. .

Hamas and Hezbollah are both part of an axis of militant groups backed by Iran.

In a recorded video message, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Thursday that Sinwar’s death “marked the beginning of the day after Hamas” but that “the task ahead is not yet completed.”

Hamas has not yet commented on reports of its leader’s death.

Here’s what you need to know.

How did it happen?

Since the October 7 attacks, Israel has committed its resources to a fierce manhunt for Sinwar, declaring him the most wanted man in Gaza and a “dead man walking.” At one point, an Israeli military spokesman said their hunt “will not stop until he is captured, dead or alive.”

And, U.S. officials believe, the Israeli military came close a few times and at one point even obtained a video showing Sinwar with several family members in a Gaza tunnel, but he kept slipping away. The Israeli army previously surrounded Sinwar’s house and launched an intensive attack on his hometown of Khan Younis, but could not find him.

That years-long search finally came to an unexpected end on Wednesday in Rafah, in the south of Gaza. Israeli forces had been in the area during a routine military operation when they came under fire near a building, two Israeli sources familiar with the matter said.

According to the Israeli army, the troops fired back with a tank and then flew a drone into the badly damaged building. The video, shared by the military, shows what appears to be Sinwar’s final moments: he sits alone in a chair, surrounded by dust and debris, and appears to look directly at the camera. He holds a piece of wood in his hand and throws it at the drone before the video ends.

Only then, and as troops inspected the rubble, did they realize Sinwar was among the bodies, the Israeli military said.

Dental records and other biometric data helped Israel identify the Hamas leader, according to a US official and former official familiar with the matter.

Sinwar was trying to escape to the north when he was killed, another Israeli military spokesman said Thursday. He was found with a gun and more than $10,000 in Israeli shekels, the spokesman said.

Who was Sinwar?

Sinwar had long been a key player within Hamas. He joined the militant group in the late 1980s and quickly rose through the ranks.

He was born in a refugee camp in Gaza after his family was expelled from the Palestinian village of Al-Majdal – now part of the Israeli city of Ashkelon – during the Arab-Israeli war.

As a student, Sinwar became an anti-occupation activist, but was imprisoned in Israel with several life sentences after being accused of orchestrating murder. He served 23 years before being released in 2011 as part of a prisoner swap.

Sinwar returned to Gaza and quickly established his name with Hamas. He founded the group’s feared international intelligence agency, the Majd, and was known for brutal violence against anyone suspected of collaborating with Israel.

He was also seen by some as a pragmatic political leader: in 2017, Hamas chose Sinwar as political head of the Politburo, the main decision-making body in Gaza.

Sinwar was designated a global terrorist by the U.S. State Department and the European Union in 2015, and has been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and France in recent years.

But after the October 7 attacks, he rose to prominence as one of Israel’s top targets. Israeli officials call him the “face of evil” and “the butcher of Khan Younis.”

He became one of Hamas’s top leaders in August after Ismail Haniyeh was assassinated in Iran. Sinwar had not been seen since the October 7 attacks and likely survived the Israeli siege of Gaza by bunkering down in an extensive network of underground tunnels.

What was his role on October 7?

Israel has publicly accused Sinwar of being the “mastermind” behind the October 7 Hamas attack – although experts say he was likely one of many.

The attack was the deadliest attack on Israel in its history. Hamas and other Palestinian armed groups killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, and took about 250 people as hostages into Gaza.

Sinwar was considered a crucial decision-maker and probably the main point of contact for the outside world in Gaza during the intense negotiations over the return of the hostages.

The talks involved senior figures from Israel, Hamas, the United States, Qatar and Egypt.

What comes next?

While it is too early to say what might happen next or how Hamas will respond, Sinwar’s killing marks the latest blow to the group – with several top leaders singled out one by one during Israel’s campaign to completely dismantle Hamas.

Just a day after Haniyeh’s killing, Israel confirmed it had killed Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif in an earlier attack – another of the reported masterminds behind October 7.

With an agreement on a ceasefire and the release of hostages to pause the war stubbornly stalled for months, senior US officials had clung to the hope that Sinwar could one day be eliminated, paving the way for a resolution opened. Now that he is gone, officials speculate that this could be one of the best chances to end the war between Israel and Hamas, but they are reluctant to make predictions about what that will ultimately mean for the unstable region.

US President Joe Biden spoke with Netanyahu on a phone call on Thursday, where “both leaders agreed that there is an opportunity to facilitate the release of the hostages and that they would work together to achieve this goal,” the office said. the Prime Minister in a reading.

But much remains unknown, including the fate of Sinwar’s brother.

Mohammed Sinwar recently took over as Hamas’ military commander, a senior Israeli official told CNN last month. The brothers had a very close bond and were often together until late August, the same official told CNN.

If Mohammed survives this week, he will likely continue his brother’s tough negotiating tactics as Israel tries to extract the remaining hostages from the Palestinian enclave. But until a clear picture emerges, it will be difficult to know the militant group’s next move.

And even after Sinwar’s death, the broader conflict in the Middle East rages on, especially as Israel prepares to retaliate against Iran’s ballistic missile attack earlier this month. CNN has previously reported that this move was expected before the US elections.

And another front of the conflict is expanding across the Israel-Lebanon border, with Hezbollah announcing a “new and escalating phase” in its war with Israel on Thursday.

Hezbollah has also suffered significant losses in recent months – from the deadly pager and walkie-talkie attacks that killed dozens of people and injured thousands, including many civilians, to the killings of several high-ranking commanders, including their chief Hassan Nasrallah, last month.

Meanwhile, Palestinians in Gaza told CNN they do not believe Sinwar’s killing will end the war – although some expressed cautious hope.

“Sinwar has died, but so many of our people have been killed, and there is now no excuse for Netanyahu to continue the war,” said 22-year-old Mumen Khalili.

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