NewDelhi: This in connection with the war against Hamas, Israel said it had eliminated senior Hamas commander Yahya Sinwar in a raid on Gaza. Although it has not been officially confirmed, the guerilla leader, who is simply called ‘Gaza’s Bin Laden’, is thought to have been killed in the Rafah area during a raid by the Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) on Wednesday.
Sinwar is known as the organizer of the October 7, 2023, attack on Israel, over 1,200 people died, and more than 250 were captured by Hamas militants who crossed the border into Israel. The raid, which struck a structure in Rafah, resulted in the killing of three militants, including Sinwar.
On Thursday, the IDF declared Sinwar dead saying that DNA had been used to identify the body. This was important because there had been a previous fake report regarding the death of Sinwar. This time the Israeli forces claim to know for sure that Sinwar has been killed.
Sinwar’s Last Stand
The incident which led to the death of Sinwar happened inside a structure, which housed the attackers. IDF soldiers attacked the building and demolished it. When the troops were debarking to the destroyed building, the body, similar to Sinwar, was found, however, his identity was initially unknown. Blood and saliva remnants were extracted from the bones and body tissues, fingerprints were taken from some skeletal remains and compared with Sinwar’s record while in Israeli prison. It affirmed that the body belonged to him.
Sinwar had been avoiding an encounter with the Israeli forces for quite some long time, and it was rumored that he used Israeli captives as shields. This the Israeli authorities argue enabled him to evade arrest for a long time. It has been alleged that Sinwar was holding six Israeli hostages who were later buried this year. With their deaths, Sinwar also lost his shield through which he had been immune to Israeli military threats.
How far is Israel determined to go in eradicating the terrorists?
After confirming the death of Sinwar, the Israel’s Defence Minister Yoav Gallant going to social media still threatening to hunt down Hamas leadership. He declared that every terrorist would be hunted down and eliminated, citing a verse from the biblical Book of Leviticus: Here you will shall chase your enemies and they shall be slain by the sword in front of you. Gallant also posted pictures of other regional big wig personalities such as Hamas’ former military chief, Muhammad Deif and Hezbollah chief Hassan Nasrallah with cross hair over their faces.
This strike is a substantial success for Israel as part of its continuous operation against Hamas and its authorities, but it means that the story is not over yet. The message IDF has conveyed to Hezbollah and through it to other groups of armed resistance is straightforward – hunting individual operators will persist, and Israel will be able to show once again that it is capable and willing to eliminate those who pose a threat to its existence.