Photo: AFP file
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was reportedly tracked by an Israeli mini drone as he lay dying in the ruins of a building in southern Gaza, according to video released by Israel's military on Thursday. The drone footage showed Sinwar throwing a stick at the hovering drone, seemingly in a desperate attempt to fend it off. After an extensive manhunt lasting over a year, Israeli troops who killed Sinwar were initially unaware they had eliminated their country's top adversary following a gunfight on Wednesday, according to Israeli officials. Intelligence services had been progressively narrowing down the area where he could operate, the military stated on Thursday, after dental records, fingerprints, and DNA testing confirmed Sinwar's death. Unlike other militant leaders targeted and killed by Israel, such as Hamas military commander Mohammed Deif who was killed in an Israeli airstrike on July 13, the operation that led to Sinwar's death was not a premeditated and targeted strike, nor was it executed by elite commandos. Instead, officials revealed that he was discovered by infantry soldiers from the Bislach Brigade, a unit typically tasked with training future unit commanders. These soldiers were searching an area in the Tal El Sultan region of southern Gaza on Wednesday, where they suspected senior Hamas members were located. The troops observed three suspected militants moving between buildings and opened fire, resulting in a gun battle during which Sinwar fled into a ruined building. According to reports in Israeli media, tank shells and a missile were also fired at the building. On Thursday, the military released drone footage showing Sinwar, severely injured in the hand, sitting on a chair with his face covered by a scarf. The video captures him attempting to throw a stick at the drone, an unsuccessful effort to bring it down. At this point, Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari stated that Sinwar was only identified as a fighter, but troops entered the building and found him with a weapon, a flak jacket, and 40,000 shekels ($10,731.63). "He tried to escape and our forces eliminated him," Hagari told reporters in a televised briefing. Hamas has not officially commented, but sources within the group suggest that the evidence they have seen indicates Sinwar was indeed killed by Israeli troops. In the final months of his life, Sinwar, the mastermind behind the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel that triggered the war in Gaza, appears to have ceased using telephones and other communication devices that could have been tracked by Israel's formidable intelligence services. ($1 = 3.7273 shekels)
