WSJ: Israeli Strike That Killed Hamas Chief Mohammed Sinwar Hit Meeting of Top Terrorists
The Times of Israel: IDF struck Sinwar “when the terror chief made the rare mistake of moving without a defensive “hostage belt” protecting him.”
A recent Israeli airstrike in southern Gaza may have succeeded in eliminating not just the Gaza-based Hamas chief, Mohammed Sinwar, but also several other high-ranking terrorists, The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday.
The Israeli strike, in early March, reportedly struck an underground bunker where Mohammed Sinwar and several of his top henchmen had assembled for a meeting. “The Israeli airstrike that targeted Hamas’s Gaza chief this month hit him as he attended a meeting of the group’s highest ranking militants, killing several important operatives and leaving a void in its top leadership,” the business daily wrote, quoting Hamas and official Arab sources.
Mohammed Sinwar had been elevated to the position of Hamas’ overall ‘military chief’ after his elder brother and top Hamas leader, Yahya Sinwar, was taken out by the Israeli military in the terrorist stronghold of Rafah seven months ago.
The news report comes a day after Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared that Israel had ‘apparently’ eliminated Mohammed Sinwar. “We eliminated the leaders of the murderers Deif, Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and it appears we also eliminated Mohammed Sinwar,” he assured at a press conference on Wednesday.
The WSJ reported:
The Israeli airstrike that targeted Hamas’s Gaza chief this month hit him as he attended a meeting of the group’s highest ranking militants, killing several important operatives and leaving a void in the top leadership of the U.S.-designated terrorist group, Hamas and Arab officials said.
The airstrike killed Mohammed Sinwar, who was quietly buried days later, along with other top militants including Mohammad Shabana, the commander of the group’s Rafah brigade, the officials said.
The Hamas leaders had gathered in a tunnel in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis to discuss matters including their approach to cease-fire talks with Israel when they were hit, the officials said. The meeting went against Hamas’s wartime security protocols and created an opening for Israel to hit several high-value targets at once. (…)
The precision and timing of the latest attack demonstrated Israel’s significant intelligence capability, the officials said. Sinwar was known to be very particular about keeping a low profile, and only a handful of people usually knew about his movements or how to contact him, they said. He operated largely behind the scenes, earning him the nickname “Shadow,” the Arab officials said.
Hamas found Sinwar’s body a day after the strike and buried it in a temporary grave in another tunnel after his family was informed, the officials said, confirming Israeli claims that he was likely dead. Hamas plans to move Sinwar’s body to a proper burial site once the fighting stops, the officials said.(…)
Hamas hasn’t confirmed Sinwar’s death, in part because the group’s leadership is figuring out who takes over in the war-torn strip, the officials said.
The precision strike was carried out on a ‘rare’ occasion when Muhammad Sinwar was not surrounded by hostages, Israeli media reports say. Sinwar and other Hamas leaders use hostages as human shields in a bid to deter Israel from targeting them.
The Times of Israel reported Saturday, quoting Israel’s Channel 12 TV network:
The strike that targeted and possibly eliminated Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar in Gaza earlier this month was made possible when the terror chief made the rare mistake of moving without a defensive “hostage belt” protecting him, according to a Friday report.
Channel 12 aired new details on the massive strike on Sinwar and other top Hamas officials in a Khan Younis tunnel on May 13 that is currently believed to have killed Sinwar, the de facto commander of Hamas in Gaza, following Israel’s killing of his brother Yahya last October.
The network said Muhammad Sinwar was almost always surrounded by hostages throughout the war, as Hamas leaders realized this was a strong deterrent against Israeli assassination attempts. And indeed, Channel 12 said Israeli intelligence had long tracked Sinwar but repeatedly ruled out potential strikes on him when presented with the opportunity due to fears there were hostages in his vicinity.
IDF continues operation ‘Gideon’s Chariots,’ hits over 100 terror targets
As Operation ‘Gideon’s Chariots’ entered its 20th day, the IDF continues operational activities all across Gaza. Besides targeting Hamas’ command structure, Israeli troops were locating and dismantling terrorist infrastructure. The operation is seen as the IDF’s final offensive to destroy Hamas’ jihadist fighting force and free the remaining hostages, as the Gaza-based terror group refuses to negotiate.
IDF forces continue to operate as part of Operation 'Gideon's Chariots' in Gaza Strip. pic.twitter.com/XtHOiaYOG0
— Eretz Israel (@EretzIsrael) May 23, 2025
“During IDF activity over the past day as part of Operation “Gideons’ Chariots,” troops eliminated terrorists in the area and dismantled booby-trapped military structures, terrorist infrastructure sites above and below ground, and anti-tank missile posts used by terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip,” the IDF said in a press release Saturday.
The Israeli Air Force struck over 100 targets in the Gaza Strip over the past day, the military says.
The targets included a launcher used to fire a rocket at southern Israel yesterday afternoon. Other targets included terror operatives, buildings used by terror groups, tunnels,… pic.twitter.com/DBYP5LPIVT
— Emanuel (Mannie) Fabian (@manniefabian) May 24, 2025
Israeli fighter jets hit more than 100 terror targets in the past 24 hours. “Additionally, the IAF struck over 100 targets throughout the Gaza Strip over the past day. Among the targets struck were terrorists from the terrorist organizations in the Gaza Strip, military structures, underground routes, and additional terrorist infrastructure sites,” the military disclosed.
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At first glance, that appears good. But I’m waiting for James Comey to find another cool shell formation on his morning walk before making a final determination.
defensive “hostage belt”
This is why Hamas won’t ever give up hostages. Definite war crime but the Jew hating world only wants to prosecute Jews. This is why the muslims are motivated to continue, There will never be peace as long as muslims exist. (Hint: Jews are only the first group they want to eliminate)
That was good intel. Apparently there are humans existing among Hamas monsters..
The Palis are getting tired of Hamas too
Maybe, but it’s not because they’ve had a change of heart. It’s because Israel has kicked their asses. On October 7th it wasn’t just Hamas that committed atrocities. Gazan civilians flooded across the breached border and engaged in the bloodshed and rape. And polls showed support not for Hamas so much as for what they’d done.
Then there are the “next monsters,” the ones who would take over once their rivals in Hamas are removed. These sorts would also have an interest in seeing Israel wipe out Hamas.
In that case, God will know his own.
I’d suspect that Israel will forever be wiping out top terrorist leaders. It’s a high mobility position. The leaders must be pretty average by now.
This is an important point. Although leaders killed are quickly replaced, the loss of those with experience in various military disciplines is crippling. For example, Germany was able to maintain, and even increase, the number of aircraft it was building right up until the factories were actually captured by Allied ground forces. But the Luftwaffe had long since lost control of the skies, not for numbers, but for lack of experienced pilots who would be quickly shot down. A high rate of attrition among experienced personal (whether they be in leadership positions or in specialties that require a high level of training and experience before becoming proficient) will ruin a military when the losses are being replaced with inexperienced and under-trained personnel.
If, as is reported. Israel is about to strike the Iranian nuclear weapons program in the next few days [supposedly the Iranians are real close to HEU enrichment to weapons grade]; may the same good fortune attend their efforts then.
Subotai Bahadur
🙏
“The Israeli strike, in early March, reportedly struck an underground bunker where Mohammed Sinwar and several of his top henchmen had assembled for a meeting.”
March? Two months ago?