The Israeli army has announced that it has found the body of Mohammed Sinwar, a top military leader of Hamas in Gaza. According to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF), Sinwar’s body was discovered inside a tunnel underneath the European Hospital in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis.
The IDF stated that it confirmed Sinwar’s identity using DNA testing. However, Hamas has not officially acknowledged his death. Sinwar, aged 49, was reportedly killed in an Israeli airstrike on May 13.
That attack, according to Gaza’s civil defense agency, killed 28 people and wounded many others. The body of Mohammad Sabaneh, another Hamas commander in charge of the Rafah Brigade, was also found alongside Sinwar’s.
The Israeli military said it recovered several personal belongings of Sinwar and Sabaneh and collected other intelligence materials from the site, which are now being further examined. Additional bodies were found in the tunnel, but their identities are still being verified.
To support their claim, the IDF invited a small group of international journalists to Khan Younis to see the tunnel for themselves. They also released videos showing a narrow tunnel entrance recently dug up in front of the hospital.
Inside, the tunnel has several rooms with items like clothing, plastic chairs, and even a gun leaning against a wall. One video shows a wrapped body being pulled out with a rope.
IDF spokesperson Brigadier General Effie Defrin commented that Sinwar’s body was found in one of the rooms, calling it further proof that Hamas hides among civilians. He accused the group of repeatedly using hospitals and other public spaces as shields.
Israel has long claimed that Hamas uses medical facilities as bases for storing weapons and planning attacks — a charge that Hamas and local medical staff deny. Despite the denials, Israel has targeted and placed heavy pressure on hospitals in Gaza, either through direct attacks or forced evacuations. These actions have pushed the healthcare system in Gaza to the brink of collapse, raising international alarm.
After a previous Israeli strike on Gaza’s al-Ahli hospital, UN Secretary General António Guterres warned that international humanitarian law requires that the wounded, medical staff, and healthcare facilities be protected during conflict.
While Israel believes this new footage supports its actions and strategies in Gaza, independent confirmation remains difficult. The war began after Hamas launched a major attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, killing around 1,200 people and taking 251 hostages. In response, Israel launched a full-scale military campaign in Gaza.
Since then, Gaza’s Hamas-run health ministry reports that over 54,880 people have been killed in the territory. A brief ceasefire and hostage exchange deal fell apart months ago, and fighting has since resumed.
Israel maintains that its goal is to eliminate Hamas and rescue the remaining hostages. Of the original 251 hostages, 54 are still being held, and 23 are believed to be alive.
Mohammed Sinwar had been involved with Hamas since its early years in the late 1980s. He was a commander in Hamas’s military wing, the Izzedine al-Qassam Brigades, and by 2005, he led the group’s Khan Younis Brigade. He was reportedly close to former Hamas military leader Mohammed Deif and played a role in planning the October 7 attack.
His brother, Yahya Sinwar — also a senior Hamas figure and believed to be one of the key masterminds behind the October 7 assault — was killed by Israeli forces in October last year.
