Hamas Leader Yahya Sinwar Possibly Killed In Gaza Strike

Yahya Ibrahim Hassan Sinwar (Arabic: يحيى إبراهيم حسن السنوار, romanized: Yaḥyá Ibrāhīm Ḥasan al-Sinwār; born 29 October 1962), commonly known as Yahya Sinwar,[note 1][3] is the de facto leader of Hamas. A Palestinian politician, he has been the chairman of the Hamas Political Bureau since August 2024[4] and the Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip since February 2017, succeeding Ismail Haniyeh in both roles.[5][6]

Sinwar was born in the Khan Yunis refugee camp in Egyptian-ruled Gaza in 1962 to a family, who had been expelled or fled from Ashkelon during the 1948 Palestine War.[7] He finished his studies at the Islamic University of Gaza, where he received a bachelor's degree in Arabic Studies.[8] For orchestrating the abduction and killing of two Israeli soldiers and four Palestinians he considered to be collaborators in 1989, Sinwar was sentenced to four life sentences by Israel, of which he served 22 years until his release among 1,026 others in a 2011 prisoner exchange for Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit.[5] During his time in prison, his life was saved by Israeli doctors who removed a brain tumor.[9][10] Sinwar was one of the co-founders of the security apparatus of Hamas.[11][12][13][14]

In 2017, Sinwar was elected as the leader of Hamas in Gaza and claimed to pursue 'peaceful, popular resistance' the following year, supporting the 2018–2019 Gaza border protests.[15] He also developed strong ties with Iran.[16][17][18] Re-elected as Hamas leader in 2021, Sinwar survived an assassination attempt by Israel that same year. He is widely regarded as the mastermind behind the 7 October Hamas-led attack on Israel in 2023.[19][20][21][22] The group had been planning the attack for two years, with Sinwar seeking to involve Hezbollah and Iran, while avoiding confrontations to maintain the element of surprise.[23][24]

In September 2015, Sinwar was designated a terrorist by the United States government.[11] Hamas and the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades have been designated terrorist organisations by the United States, the European Union, and other countries. In May 2024, Karim Khan, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Court, announced his intention to apply for an arrest warrant for Sinwar for war crimes and crimes against humanity, as part of the ICC investigation in Palestine.[25] In September 2024, the U.S. Department of Justice announced criminal charges against Sinwar for his role in the 7 October attacks.[26][27][28]

On 17 October 2024, the Israel Defence Forces stated that they were trying to confirm whether Sinwar was among three people that the IDF killed in Gaza.[29]
WIKIPEDIA.

FOLLOW US ON WWW.SOUTHFLORIDACONSERVATIVE.COM