On the night of October 17 to 18, Israel announced that it had killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinouar during an operation in Rafah. His body, preserved by Israel, was autopsied and could well serve as a bargaining chip between Hamas and Israel.
While the Israeli army was carrying out a regular patrol in the south of the Gaza Strip, soldiers killed Hamas leader Yahya Sinouar. During this patrol, the soldiers were unaware of having killed the leader of Hamas, especially since the operation had not been planned and targeted as was the case for other leaders of the Palestinian movement.
According to authorities, Yahya Sinouar was found, along with 2 other people, moving around buildings in the Tal al Sultan area, in the south of the Gaza Strip. A shootout breaks out and the Hamas leader is hit. He will be found by a drone, dying, covered with a keffiyeh. He was in possession of a weapon, a bulletproof vest and 40,000 shekels (or $10,761).
At this time, he is still not identified as the leader of Hamas. According to the BBCit was only after tests that Israel was able to confirm having “eliminated” Yahya Sinouar.
His body preserved by Israel
According to Israeli media, his body will be held in a secret location after the autopsy. The autopsy report reveals that Yahya Sinouar was killed by a gunshot to the head and shell fire. Yahya Sinouar’s body could also be kept by the Jewish state and used as a bargaining chip with Hamas.
According to the association Addameer which lists the bodies held by the Jewish State, Israel would similarly hold 552 Palestinian bodies including around fifty minors.
Hamas is “alive and will remain so”
After the death of Yahya Sinouar, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei declared that Hamas was “alive and will remain so”. “His loss is certainly painful for the resistance front but it will not stop with the martyrdom of Sinouar” he added, while his brother Mohammed Sinwar should succeed him.
Swiss
