News Flash
JERUSALEM, May 28, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu on Wednesday said the military had killed Mohammed Sinwar, the
presumed leader of Hamas in Gaza and the brother of slain former chief Yahya
Sinwar.
"In 600 days of the 'War of Revival', we have indeed changed the face of
the Middle East," Netanyahu told parliament.
"We drove the terrorists out of our territory, entered the Gaza Strip with
force, eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists, eliminated... Mohammed
Sinwar."
Israeli media had reported that Sinwar was targeted in Israeli air strikes
in the southern Gaza city of Khan Yunis on May 13.
At the time, the Israeli military said it conducted "a precise struck on
Hamas terrorists in a command and control centre located in an underground
terrorist infrastructure site beneath the European hospital in Khan Yunis".
Sinwar's older brother Yahya, accused by Israel of masterminding Hamas's
October 7, 2023 attack that triggered the war in Gaza, was killed in the south
of the territory in October 2024.
Experts say it is likely that Mohammed Sinwar took over as the head of the
armed wing of Hamas, the Ezzedine al-Qassam Brigades, after its leader Mohammed Deif was killed.
Following the deaths of several Hamas leaders since October 7, Mohammed
Sinwar was considered to be at the heart of decisions on indirect negotiations
with Israel, the issue of hostages and the management of Hamas's armed wing.
Hamas is designated a terrorist organisation by the United States and the
European Union, among others.