Background

Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been silent for months

Article arrow_drop_down


In a windowless room, somewhere in the bowels of the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) headquarters, Chief of Staff Lt Gen Herzi Halevi jabbed his index finger forward.

Israel had just assassinated the Hezbollah leader and was about to invade Lebanon when he summoned his generals and commanders to take instructions.

But pictures of the meeting released to the press showed a seemingly unrelated image in the background.

Up on a screen mounted on the wood-panelled wall are fourteen mugshots of the Hamas chain of command – most of them with a giant red cross over them to mark that they had been killed.

At the top of the chain was public enemy no 1, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, with his grey hair and salt and pepper beard. For the first time since the war began, he had a question mark over his head.

The image set off a fresh round of speculation that Israel’s most wanted, the man who planned and ordered the Oct 7 massacres, was finally dead.

A little over a week until the anniversary of the terror attacks this coming Monday, was it possible the IDF had finally got their man?

Rumours about his possible death had emerged a few weeks earlier when intelligence officials began briefing that one of the precision airstrikes that had levelled Gaza may have killed the leader.

No concrete evidence has emerged since, but the pattern follows similar high-level assassinations in Gaza, which have taken a few weeks to be publicly announced.

Two well-placed Israeli officials told The Telegraph that the defence establishment believes that Sinwar is now dead.

One of the sources said that “it is highly likely that Yahya Sinwar was eliminated in one of the IDF strikes. The assessments in Israel’s security leadership suggest that Sinwar was most likely killed.”

However, plenty of caution remains. Sceptics question the timing around the Oct 7 anniversary and how Israel would have killed a man said to have been hidden deep underground and surrounded, according to reports, by Israeli hostages.

Sinwar could have decided the best way to keep himself safe as assassinations take down his top leaders is to retreat entirely from view. American officials told the New York Times they believed Sinwar is still alive and making key decisions for Hamas.

The clues

Israeli sources told The Telegraph that one piece of evidence emerging about his possible death was an end to communications with the leader.

One source said the handwritten notes delivered by couriers that had been keeping the hostage negotiations alive had dried up.

However, Israel also announced on Thursday it had killed Sinwar’s right-hand man some three months ago. Rawhi Mushtaha was allegedly one of those involved in the complex human chain of delivering the notes.

Israel’s intelligence machine has relied on tracking couriers in the past, notably to find and kill Hamas’ military chief Mohammed Deif, who was killed in an airstrike in Gaza in July. The US adopted a similar technique to find Osama bin Laden.

Sources suggested Israel’s defence establishment is believed to be currently in a situation similar to when an airstrike targeted Mr Deif in Khan Younis on July 13. The official confirmation of his death was announced nearly three weeks later on August 1.

Sinwar was appointed the political leader of Hamas after Ishmail Haniyeh was killed in an alleged Israeli attack in Tehran in July, making him the all-powerful figure of the terror group.

Widely seen as the architect behind the Oct 7 massacre, he is considered the most valuable target for Israel, which refers to him as a “dead man walking.”

Israeli forces have scoured Gaza for Sinwar since they invaded the enclave in late October and even came close to capturing him several times. The IDF assessed early on in the war that the Hamas leader was hiding in southern Gaza, specifically in a tunnel deep underground.

In February, the IDF released the first footage of Sinwar since Oct 7, showing his children and wife walking through a tunnel under a cemetery in the Bani Suheila area in Khan Younis.

Sinwar is seen in flip flops and carrying a bag as he walks through the tunnel behind his family on Oct 10 but Israeli soldiers only reached the tunnel in February where they found the surveillance footage.

IDF spokesperson Daniel Hagari said that the tunnel from which Sinwar escaped before Israeli forces came contained “bedrooms of senior Hamas officials and the office of the commander of the Khan Younis Brigade’s Eastern Battalion, from where he directed the attack on Oct 7”.

Senior Hamas officials resided in the compound in “comfortable conditions” with food and bathrooms, along with safes with “personal funds of millions of shekels and dollars in cash,” Mr Hagari added.

In December, Mr Netanyahu announced that Israeli troops had surrounded Mr Sinwar’s home in Khan Younis.

“I said last night that our forces could reach anywhere in the Gaza Strip. Now, they are encircling Sinwar’s home. His home is not his fortress, and while he may flee, it is only a matter of time until we get him,” Mr Netanyahu said.

In August, the outgoing commander of the IDF’s 98th Division, Brig. Gen. Dan Goldfus, told Channel 12 that the army was “minutes” away from catching the Hamas leader.

“We were close. We were in his compound. We got to an underground compound.  We found a lot of money there. The coffee was still hot. Weapons strewn around,” Mr Goldfus said.

In an image released by the IDF, the chart in the background shows Sinwar's name with a question mark over his headIn an image released by the IDF, the chart in the background shows Sinwar's name with a question mark over his head

In an image released by the IDF, the chart in the background shows Yahya Sinwar’s name with a question mark over his head – IDF

The question mark raised the possibility that Sinwar had been killedThe question mark raised the possibility that Sinwar had been killed

The question mark raised the possibility that Sinwar had been killed – IDF

And as Israel continues to kill Hamas commanders, Mr Sinwar is running out of places to hide.

“Every day, he has trouble finding places where he can hide. The list of associates and confidants is being reduced,” a security source told the Jerusalem Post in August.

But Israel is also dealing with a far wider and more complex network of tunnels than they believed existed before the invasion.

That leaves intelligence gathering as the key.

The hunt

Hunters fall under an umbrella of units under the Israeli Security Agency and include intelligence officers, special operation units from the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), military engineers and surveillance experts.

Teams of experts entering the tunnels, like the special section of the Combat Engineering Corps, are armed with ground-penetrating radar.

Yahalom, a special section within the Combat Engineering Corps, has more experience in tunnel warfare than any of its counterparts in Western armies and has access to state-of-the-art US-made ground-penetrating radar.

Many clues have turned up in Hamas compounds revealing everything from the terror group’s plans, orders, maps and blueprints of compound structures.

Seized computers, documents and surveillance footage have all helped keep the trail warm.

“Hundreds and thousands of interrogations of terrorists and senior leaders would not have yielded such intimate intelligence on their methods of order and organisation in such a short period,” a military official said in July.

But the interrogations of thousands of members of Hamas and other terror groups who were arrested since Oct 7 has also helped.

They have so far led to the IDF finding tunnels and weapon depots and revealing hospitals and Red Crescent facilities Hamas allegedly uses to operate from.

Yahya Sinwar sits defiantly in an armchair after Israel bombed his home in Gaza in 2021Yahya Sinwar sits defiantly in an armchair after Israel bombed his home in Gaza in 2021

Yahya Sinwar sits defiantly in an armchair after Israel bombed his home in Gaza in 2021

“Each and every investigation leads to the incrimination of new sites, and the human intelligence that emerges… is an inseparable layer of the complete intelligence picture,” the IDF said already back in November.

The importance of tracking Sinwar’s communication with other members has also become clear.

Previously Israel’s secretive signals intelligence unit 8200 had been employed to eavesdrop on Hamas communications.

But their role was reduced since Hamas leadership ditched all electronic communication in favour of notes and oral messages delivered by runners.

“Using complex means, he communicates with all the leadership of the movement both inside (Gaza) and outside, and also with the (Ezzedine) al-Qassam Brigades,” a senior Hamas leader told AfP.

“He follows complex security procedures for his personal protection, but this does not prevent him from continuing his duties and making decisions,” he added.

The repercussions

If Mr Sinwar has been killed, it raises a number of questions.

Khaled Meshaal, the former leader of Hamas, is perhaps the only person who could fill his shoes and govern the terror group effectively, albeit from abroad and not inside Gaza.

There is also the possibility that hostages may have been killed in the same strike on Sinwar.

If so, the Israeli government will be met with fury from the vast majority of the public that wants a ceasefire deal with Hamas.

In theory, killing Sinwar could give Mr Netanyahu the win he needs to sign a deal that could end the war and release the remaining hostages.

Khalil al-Hayya, the deputy leader of Hamas, is currently representing the terror group in the negotiations, which notably have been stalled for weeks.

But since he doesn’t have a mandate to strike a deal by himself, there won’t be any ceasefire until Mr Sinwar either shows signs of life, and re-engages with mediators, or he is announced dead and a new leader is appointed.

Giora Eiland, the former head of Israel’s national security council, told The Telegraph that there are definitely “signs” that Sinwar has been killed.

But he added he hasn’t received any information from Israeli officials he’s spoken to in recent weeks.

“It’s still a mystery,” he said.

Mr Netanyahu’s speech on Sunday raised eyebrows as it listed Sinwar alongside other commanders killed by Israel.

“The regime in Tehran does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and to exact a price from our enemies. Sinwar and Deif did not understand this; neither did Nasrallah or Mohsen,” Mr Netanyahu said.

Broaden your horizons with award-winning British journalism. Try The Telegraph free for 3 months with unlimited access to our award-winning website, exclusive app, money-saving offers and more.



Source: www.yahoo.com

About the author

trending_flat
Jury shown video of Nima Momeni’s stabbing motions

In a win for the prosecution, jurors today were shown a video in which alleged killer Nima Momeni made distinct stabbing motions, which prosecutors say match those that killed Cash App founder Bob Lee. The video was shown over objections from Momeni’s defense team. The jury was also shown images of the exact locations of Lee’s stab wounds, during testimony from Assistant Medical Examiner Ellen Moffatt. The video was recorded by San Francisco police Sgt. David Goff, who was tracking Momeni’s movements in the days after the stabbing in April 2023. When he captured Momeni on video, the defendant was talking to Brian Hedley, a private investigator who worked for Momeni’s former defense attorney, Paula Canny.  In the video, Hedley and Momeni are standing in the parking lot at Canny’s office and the video shows Momeni making three arm movements — two to […]

trending_flat
Musk now says it’s ‘pointless’ to build a $25,000 Tesla for human drivers

By Chris Kirkham (Reuters) - When Reuters reported in April that Tesla (TSLA) had scrapped plans for a long-promised, next-generation $25,000 electric vehicle, the automaker’s stock plunged. Chief Executive Elon Musk rushed to respond on X, his social-media network. “Reuters is lying,” he posted, without elaborating. Tesla’s stock recovered some of its losses. Six months later, Musk appears to have backed into an admission that Tesla dropped its plans for a human-driven $25,000 car. He said in an Oct. 23 earnings call that building the affordable EV would be "pointless” unless the car was fully autonomous. His latest remarks came in response to an investor asking: “When can we expect Tesla to give us the $25,000 non-robotaxi regular car model?” Musk responded: “We’re not making a non-robo…,” before he was interrupted by another Tesla executive. Musk later added: “Basically, I […]

trending_flat
A mural defaced, restored and its evolution

This weekend, a sharp resident noticed on Saturday morning that Marta Ayala Minero’s mural on the northeast corner of 24th and Valencia streets had been vandalized. When I contacted Ayala on Saturday, she said she would be out the next day to restore it. And indeed she did just that. Restored by the artist Marta Ayala Minero on Sunday, November 2.2024. Courtesy of the artist. Marta Ayala Minero’s mural on 24th and Valencia Street. Restored on Sunday. Photo by a community contributor. When I mentioned that the mural had been somewhat different earlier, she gave me a lesson on its evolution. First painted in 1992, thanks to a grant from the Mayor’s Office of  Housing and Community Development,  Roots and Frequencies Basic to Our Education “had a lady speaking the phrase for “nonviolence” in a few languages.”The mural was based on a dream […]

trending_flat
Tucker Carlson Bizarrely Blames Abortion For Increase In Hurricanes

If you thought Tucker Carlson couldn’t get any weirder after claiming he was “physically mauled” by a demon that left claw marks on his body, guess again.Now the former Fox News host turned Donald Trumptoadie is blaming abortions for the increase in hurricanes.Carlson made the dubious claim Monday on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” podcast during a discussion about spirituality that stemmed from his recent claim he’d been attacked by a demon.Somehow the conversation morphed into Carlson decreeing that anyone who thinks reproductive rights are a good thing is “evil” and practicing child sacrifice.Carlson then claimed that people who don’t agree with his thinking are “worshiping abortion, the killing of kids, not as something that, like, needs to happen unfortunately, but as something that is good, that’s pro-abortion.”He then proclaimed that abortion likely causes hurricanes.“I’m sure I’ll be attacked for saying […]

trending_flat
On Día de los Muertos the Mission ‘remembers with beauty’

Sign up below to get Mission Local’s free newsletter, a daily digest of news you won’t find elsewhere. Surrounded by altars, marigolds, and candlelight, Marco Ruiz stood out from the crowd. In lieu of an elaborate memorial, Ruiz simply hugged a large framed photo of his brother Martin, who had died two days after his 19th birthday.Ruiz was stoic, taking in the scene. When asked about his brother, however, he smiled. “He thought he was the best dancer,” Marco grinned. In reality, “he was so bad — but he didn’t care.” After Martin was killed in a car accident years ago, 1,000 people attended the funeral, Marco added. Now, only the oldest kids remember him. On Día de los Muertos on Saturday, the Mission, like the Ruizes, was focused on celebrating the past.  Want the latest on the Mission and San Francisco? […]

trending_flat
Scientists Found a ‘Yellow Brick Road’ at The Bottom of The Pacific Ocean

An expedition to a deep-sea ridge, just north of the Hawaiian Islands, revealed a surprise discovery back in 2022: an ancient dried-out lake bed paved with what looks like a yellow brick road.The eerie scene was chanced upon by the exploration vessel Nautilus, while surveying the Liliʻuokalani ridge within Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (PMNM).PMNM is one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world, larger than all the national parks in the United States combined, and we've only explored about 3 percent of its seafloor.Researchers at the Ocean Exploration Trust are pushing the frontiers of this wilderness, which lies more than 3,000 meters below the waves, and the best part is, anyone can watch the exploration.A highlight reel of the expedition's footage published on YouTube in April 2022 captured the moment researchers operating the deep-sea vehicle stumbled upon the […]

Related

trending_flat
Musk now says it’s ‘pointless’ to build a $25,000 Tesla for human drivers

By Chris Kirkham (Reuters) - When Reuters reported in April that Tesla (TSLA) had scrapped plans for a long-promised, next-generation $25,000 electric vehicle, the automaker’s stock plunged. Chief Executive Elon Musk rushed to respond on X, his social-media network. “Reuters is lying,” he posted, without elaborating. Tesla’s stock recovered some of its losses. Six months later, Musk appears to have backed into an admission that Tesla dropped its plans for a human-driven $25,000 car. He said in an Oct. 23 earnings call that building the affordable EV would be "pointless” unless the car was fully autonomous. His latest remarks came in response to an investor asking: “When can we expect Tesla to give us the $25,000 non-robotaxi regular car model?” Musk responded: “We’re not making a non-robo…,” before he was interrupted by another Tesla executive. Musk later added: “Basically, I […]

trending_flat
Tucker Carlson Bizarrely Blames Abortion For Increase In Hurricanes

If you thought Tucker Carlson couldn’t get any weirder after claiming he was “physically mauled” by a demon that left claw marks on his body, guess again.Now the former Fox News host turned Donald Trumptoadie is blaming abortions for the increase in hurricanes.Carlson made the dubious claim Monday on Steve Bannon’s “War Room” podcast during a discussion about spirituality that stemmed from his recent claim he’d been attacked by a demon.Somehow the conversation morphed into Carlson decreeing that anyone who thinks reproductive rights are a good thing is “evil” and practicing child sacrifice.Carlson then claimed that people who don’t agree with his thinking are “worshiping abortion, the killing of kids, not as something that, like, needs to happen unfortunately, but as something that is good, that’s pro-abortion.”He then proclaimed that abortion likely causes hurricanes.“I’m sure I’ll be attacked for saying […]

trending_flat
Scientists Found a ‘Yellow Brick Road’ at The Bottom of The Pacific Ocean

An expedition to a deep-sea ridge, just north of the Hawaiian Islands, revealed a surprise discovery back in 2022: an ancient dried-out lake bed paved with what looks like a yellow brick road.The eerie scene was chanced upon by the exploration vessel Nautilus, while surveying the Liliʻuokalani ridge within Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument (PMNM).PMNM is one of the largest marine conservation areas in the world, larger than all the national parks in the United States combined, and we've only explored about 3 percent of its seafloor.Researchers at the Ocean Exploration Trust are pushing the frontiers of this wilderness, which lies more than 3,000 meters below the waves, and the best part is, anyone can watch the exploration.A highlight reel of the expedition's footage published on YouTube in April 2022 captured the moment researchers operating the deep-sea vehicle stumbled upon the […]

trending_flat
1 Monster Stock That Turned $10,000 Into Almost $5.6 Million in 20 Years

In the past two decades, the S&P 500 (SNPINDEX: ^GSPC) has generated a total return of 661%. That annualized gain of about 10.7% means that a $10,000 cash outlay would be worth $76,110 right now. This is a result that any investor would be pleased with. But there's one monster stock that turned a $10,000 initial investment 20 years ago into nearly $5.6 million today. Here's what investors need to know about this dominant industry-leading enterprise. Start Your Mornings Smarter! Wake up with Breakfast news in your inbox every market day. Sign Up For Free » Without a doubt, Netflix (NASDAQ: NFLX) is one of the best-performing stocks in the past two decades. It's crazy to think that in 20 years, a single stock could turn early investors into multimillionaires. Investors would certainly struggle to find many businesses that have outperformed this […]

trending_flat
Iran student strips in protest over strict hijab dress code

A female student at a university in Tehran stripped to her underwear in an act of protest after being harassed by campus security officers over her hijab.Videos circulating widely on social media show the unidentified student sitting outside the campus in her underwear while the security guards surrounded her.Another video shows her walking around the campus in her bra and pants while stunned fellow students film her on their mobile phones.Her act of resistance began after a confrontation inside Azad University’s science and research centre on Saturday, when security forces physically attacked the student because she was not wearing a headscarf.In response to having her clothes torn, she chose to remove her remaining garments as a protest, according to Iranian student social media news channel, the Amir Kabir newsletter and witnesses who spoke to The Telegraph.Multiple witnesses confirmed her subsequent […]

trending_flat
The US is pumping more oil than ever, and it’s complicating things for other crude-exporting countries

Anton Petrus/Getty Images US crude production hit a new all-time monthly high in August. This complicates things for OPEC+, which was planning to start increasing output in December. Oil is down 20% from April highs, causing some exporters to be cautious about how much they're pumping. The US is pumping a record amount of oil. But that may not be welcome news to other crude-producing nations. Domestic output reached 13.4 million barrels a day in August, eclipsing all previous monthly records. According to US Energy Information Administration data, firms in Texas and New Mexico led the surge. That level of production puts the US at odds with the plans of other oil-producing nations. OPEC+, an alliance led by Saudi Arabia and Russia, has said it plans to begin in December a sequence of monthly output increases. But given the decline […]

About Karl The Fog

Welcome to Karl The Fog, your digital gateway to the enigmatic world of San Francisco’s legendary mist. We are the storytellers, the observers, and the chroniclers of the ever-elusive, charismatic character known as Karl.

KARL THE FOG, and KARL THE FOG COFFEE logos, images, fonts, names, and other trademarks are trademarks of KARL THE FOG, LLC and may not be used without permission.

Login to enjoy full advantages

Please login or subscribe to continue.

Go Premium!

Enjoy the full advantage of the premium access.

Stop following

Unfollow Cancel

Cancel subscription

Are you sure you want to cancel your subscription? You will lose your Premium access and stored playlists.

Go back Confirm cancellation