The London-based newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat recently reported that Israel had nearly captured Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar on at least five occasions prior to his “coincidental” death during a standard military operation.
According to sources, a comprehensive account was provided of Sinwar’s movements and those of his associates during the conflict. These sources revealed that Sinwar had conveyed a message to his family about his nephew, Ibrahim Muhammad al-Sinwar, who had been traveling with him. The message included details of Ibrahim’s death and burial location but only reached the family two days after Sinwar himself was killed.
The report also mentioned that Sinwar was thought to be hiding in a tunnel during a military operation in Khan Yunis in January. Military forces found video footage from cameras within the tunnels, capturing Sinwar walking around and placing various items in a tunnel where he and his family had sought refuge just hours before, and as the violence was intensifying.
Despite the military’s efforts, Sinwar evaded capture both above and within the Khan Yunis tunnels. As the scope of the military operation broadened, Sinwar was compelled to find a safer place for his wife and children, sending them far from his own location due to his constant need for mobility. Sources indicated that his family was in good health and that he communicated with them through letters approximately every month or so.
“With the increased intensity of the military operation in Khan Yunis, Sinwar insisted on remaining there, and bid farewell a number of times to his brother Muhammad and to Rafa’a Salameh, the commander of the region’s brigade, who was eliminated last July together with Mohammed al-Deif (commander of the Al-Qassem Battalions), who he met sometimes since the start of the war in safe homes or tunnels.” The sources specified that these individuals were not always together but would occasionally meet for hours or days before separating again based on the prevailing conditions.
Further details shared with the newspaper revealed a rarely known episode in which Israeli forces came within just a few dozen meters of a house where Sinwar was hiding in Khan Yunis’s Block G, accompanied only by a bodyguard. Sources recounted that at this time, Sinwar was armed and prepared to confront the Israeli soldiers.
The report continued that Hamas operatives helped Sinwar escape from the house through breaches made in neighboring homes, allowing him to move to a safer location approximately a kilometer away. Sources also claimed that his brother Salama eventually pressured Sinwar to abandon Khan Yunis and relocate to Rafah in February, as Israeli forces had by then nearly seized complete control of Khan Yunis.
In Rafah, Sinwar remained for several months, frequently shifting his position. He stayed mainly in the western parts of Rafah from late May onward, alternating between surface and underground locations. While there, Sinwar hid in various tunnels, including one associated with the cold-blooded killing of six Israelis, a move seemingly signaling his final intent to carry out these acts.
{Matzav.com}
