Who was Muhammad Sinwar? Hamas chief confirmed dead in Gaza tunnel after Israeli airstrike

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced on Wednesday that Muhammed Sinwar, reportedly the head of Hamas’ armed wing, has been killed, seemingly confirming his death in a recent strike in the Gaza Strip. Hamas has yet to confirm the report.

Muhammed Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader who played a key role in orchestrating the 7 October 2023 attack that ignited the Israel-Hamas conflict, and who was killed by Israeli forces in October 2024.

Who was Muhammad Sinwar?

Mohammed Ibrahim Hassan Sinwar, popularly known as Mohammed Sinwar, is a prominent militant who served as the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip and the leader of the Ezzedeen Al-Qassam brigades from October 2024, reported The New York Times.

Born in the Khan Yunis refugee camp on 16 September 1975, Sinwar spent several years in Israeli and Palestinian Authority jails in the 1990s. He joined the military movement of Hamas in 1991.

Arrested by Israel in 1991 for suspected terrorism, Sinwar was released within a year. But he was arrested for several years by the Palestinian Authority in Ramallah in the 1990s.

Sinwar is considered to have operated "behind the scenes", which gave him the nickname 'The Shadow'.

Sinwar became the commander of Hamas' Khan Younis brigade in 2005. In 2006, he was a participant in the abduction of Gilad Shalit, who was released in 2011 in exchange for 1,027 Palestinian prisoners, one of whom was his brother Yahya Sinwar, as per the reports.

In May 2021, Israel made six assassination attempts on Sinwar. Earlier in 2014, Hamas announced that Sinwar had died during the Israel-Gaza War, but later the information was found to be incorrect.

According to the Israeli intelligence, Sinwar is believed to be one of the masterminds of the Hamas-led attack on Israel on 7 October 2023. Israel had placed a $300,000 bounty on information about Mohammed Sinwar's whereabouts.

On 13 May, the Israel Security Agency and IDF claimed that Sinwar was targeted in an Israeli airstrike on a bunker under the Gaza European Hospital in Khan Yunis. Saudi channel Al-Hadath claimed Sinwar's body was recovered from the tunnel along with Muhammad Shabana, however, official confirmation is yet to arrive.

(THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN UPDATED TO REFLECT THE LATEST DETAILS)