Israel Shares Video Of Hamas Chief Yahya Sinwar In Gaza Tunnel Before October 7 Attack | Watch

A few days after Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was eliminated in a planned operation in the Palestinian enclave, the Israeli military on Sunday released footage of him and his family seen inside an underground Gaza tunnel hours before Hamas launched the October 7 attack last year that triggered the ongoing war.

The footage shows Sinwar along with his wife and children moving belongings including a television, water, pillows and mattresses into a tunnel as the Hamas leader appears to be stocking up on supplies ahead of the group’s attack on Israel, military spokesman Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari said.

Affirming that the tunnel, used as Hamas leader’s hiding spot, was located under the family home in Khan Yunis, Hagari said, “This was a luxury that the people of Gaza did not have – as Sinwar always prioritized himself, his money and Hamas terrorists over the people of Gaza.”

Hagari showed photos of the underground tunnel network, which had toilets, showers and a kitchen.

Yahya Sinwar’s Final Moments

The Israeli forces released drone footage showing Hamas leader Sinwar’s final moments. The footage showed Sinwar ‘sitting on a sofa, wounded’ in a ruined Gaza house. Hamas, meanwhile, said Sinwar died heroically in battle.

The video showed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar flinging a stick over his head in the direction of the approaching drone with his right arm appearing to be severely injured.

Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz confirmed that Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar, who masterminded the October 7 attack on Israel, was ‘eliminated’, according to initial DNA testing.

‘Gunshot To Head, Finger Cut Off’

Before Hamas officially confirmed the death of Sinwar, an autopsy carried out by Israel found that Yahya Sinwar was killed by a gunshot to the head. An expert at the Israel National Centre of Forensic Medicine said the Hamas leader’s body reached them with a finger cut off.

Chen Kugel, chief pathologist, told CNN in an interview that the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) cut off Sinwar’s finger for DNA analysis. He said he is “100 percent” certain about the identity of the body sent to the laboratory and in his assessment of the gunshot being the cause of death. He added that the Hamas leader also suffered other injuries, including from a tank shell.

During a year of the Israel-Hamas conflict, the Israeli forces had often chased Sinwar, but the latter managed to escape. Israel had identified Sinwar’s final hiding after the military found “his DNA sample on a tissue with which he blew his nose,” said Hagari.

The October 7 attack on Israel, masterminded by Sinwar, killed around 1,200 people and resulted in 235 people being taken hostage. Since then, Israel’s retaliation in Gaza targeting Hamas positions has led to over 40,000 deaths.