Yahya Sinwar, who is the leader of Hamas whom Israel is hunting in the basement of Gaza

YAHYA SINWAR, THE HAMAS LEADER HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR THE 7 OCTOBER ATTACK

• We remember one phrase above all about him: “We will tear down the border with Israel and tear the hearts from their bodies“. Yahya Sinwarknown as Abu Ibrahim, since 2017 Hamas leader in the Strip Gazais considered by the Israeli army to be mainly responsible for the attack of last October 7, which started the conflict that is inflaming the Middle East

Israel-Hamas war, LIVE UPDATES

SINWAR IS BEING SEARCHED IN GAZA

• Born on October 29, 1962 to Khan Yunisone of the most derelict areas of Gaza, Sinwar remained in an Israeli prison for 22 years, sentenced to several life sentences for the murder of three IDF soldiers and 12 Palestinians suspected of collaborating with the Jewish state. Now Israel is looking for him in Gaza’s underground network

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SINWAR IN THE BASEMENTS OF AL-SHIFA HOSPITAL?

• On November 10, the IDF published a video of X where they can be seen two members of Hamasarrested on October 7, who during their interrogations they talk about those who hide in the basement of the greatest hospital of Gaza, theal-Shifa. Among the names there is Sinwar. However, the news cannot be confirmed in any official way. There are also those who think that not even Hamas knows where Sinwar really is

What is Hezbollah, an armed group in Lebanon close to Hamas

“A CRUEL MAN”

• Finding it is high on Israel’s priority list. He is spoken of as a cruel and charismatic man. The agents of the Israeli Internal Security Service remind us of this Shin Betwho interrogated him in the 1980s: “He boldly took responsibility for the punishment inflicted on a suspected informer. He summoned the man’s brother, a member of Hamas, and forced him to bury him alive by throwing dirt and earth until he is suffocated. This is Yahya Sinwar”

Gaza and Hamas’ underground tunnel network

THE RELEASE IN 2011

• The current leader of Hamas was arrested by Israel in 1988. He remained in prison until 2011when he was released in exchange for the release of Gilad Shalit, an Israeli soldier kidnapped by Hamas in 2006. Once freed, Sinwar wasted no time. “We know that Israel has 200 nuclear warheads and the most advanced air force in the region. We do not have the capacity to dismantle Israel,” he declared on TV. Years later, for some those words sound like an attempt to appear weak in order to shift attention and strike at the right time

What is Hamas, the organization that has clashed with Israel for over 30 years

THE ELECTION IN 2017

• After years of advising Hamas founder Sheikh Ahmed Yassin, Sinwar was elected leader of the group in 2017, thus replacing Ismail Haniyeh, who according to some rumors was promoted to be the head of Hamas abroad, in Qatar. According to other versions he was taken out of the way

THE RE-ELECTION OF THE “BUTCHER OF KHAN YUNIS”

• Sinwar was next re-elected in 2021. He is loved as much as feared: his violent methods against Palestinian opponents and spies have built his image as a leader. Israeli intelligence recalls that there are those in Gaza who call him “the butcher of Khan Yunis”

THE WALK TO GAZA

• In May 2021, during an attack on Khan Yunis, news spread that it had been Sinwar’s house was hit. In a provocative tone, a few days later, the Hamas leader announced during a press conference that he would walk home and challenged Israel to kill him. Then he was seen walking through the streets of Gaza, surrounded by crowds

THE RELEASE OF THE HOSTAGES

• At the end of October, Sinwar had proposed the release of all prisoners Israelis in Gaza in exchange for the release of Palestinians imprisoned by Israel. Nothing was done about the initiative

NETANYAHU: “A WALKING DEAD”

• Immediately after the October 7 attack, Israeli Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi blamed Sinwar for what happened. And he had warned: “He and his men are already dead.” Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu took the same tone, comparing him to “a little Hitler” – he defined it “a walking dead“

Israel-Hamas war, the Sky TG24 special