The Times of Israel May 18, 2025
Body of Hamas leader Muhammad Sinwar found in Gaza tunnel struck by IDF

The Saudi channel Al-Hadath reports that the body of Muhammad Sinwar, the de facto commander of Hamas’s military wing in Gaza, was found in a tunnel in Khan Younis where the terror leader was targeted by the Israel Defense Forces last week.

According to the report, the bodies of 10 of Sinwar’s aides were found with him.
It is also reported that there is evidence that the commander of the Rafah Brigade in Hamas’s military wing, Mohammad Shabana, was also killed in the strike.

Israel has not confirmed the deaths of either Sinwar or Shabana.

The strikes on Tuesday targeted an underground command compound below the European Hospital where Sinwar was believed to be sheltering.
The IDF later bombed the area several more times, in an apparent attempt to prevent anyone from approaching the tunnel.

Sinwar, a senior Hamas military commander, is the younger brother of the former Hamas leader in Gaza, Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by the IDF in southern Gaza last October.

Following the killing of Hamas’s top military commander, Muhammad Deif, last July, Muhammad Sinwar took charge of the terror group’s military wing.
Later, after Sinwar’s older brother was killed by IDF troops, he became the de facto leader of the terror group in the Gaza Strip.

Israeli officials have described Muhammad Sinwar as obstinate with regard to negotiations with Hamas for the release of hostages, and an obstacle to reaching a ceasefire deal. The younger Sinwar is also wanted for terrorist actions against Israel and has been active in Hamas for decades.

He was jailed by Israel in the 1990s for nine months and spent an additional three years in a Palestinian Authority prison in Ramallah, from which he escaped in 2000. In 2006, Sinwar was part of a Hamas cell that abducted IDF soldier Gilad Shalit. He also previously commanded Hamas’s Khan Younis Brigade.

Most of Hamas’s leadership has been eliminated by Israel during the ongoing war, which was sparked by Hamas' October 7, 2023 massacre.
Day 590 Israel winning battles but not war