The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) released footage on Tuesday, claiming to have identified Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar walking through a Gaza tunnel with his family members. If confirmed, this marks the first sighting of Sinwar since he went into hiding ahead of Hamas's October 7 onslaught on Israel.
According to the IDF, the one-minute-long clip shows Sinwar in a tunnel beneath the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis, accompanied by his wife and three children, led by his brother Ibrahim. Despite his back facing the camera, the IDF claims to have identified Sinwar using artificial intelligence and noting distinctive features, such as the size of the figure's ears.
Sinwar, 61, is a former commander of Hamas's Ezzdine al-Qassam Brigades and was elected in 2017 as the Palestinian group's head. He has spent 23 years in Israeli jails before his release in 2011 in a prisoner exchange involving French-Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit who was held captive by Hamas.
The video, retrieved from Hamas surveillance footage recently obtained by IDF troops, shows Sinwar appearing healthy and carrying a bag while his daughter holds a doll. The IDF claims that the footage was taken from tunnels that connect to areas where hostages were held, and it was part of a broader network used by senior Hamas officials during the recent conflict.
IDF spokesman Daniel Hagari in a press conference said, "One video or another is not what really matters. What is important is the intelligence that will allow us to reach senior Hamas officials and the hostages. The hunt for Sinwar will not stop until we catch him, dead or alive."
Hagari also claimed that earlier this month, Israeli troops detained close relatives of senior Hamas military commanders, including Sinwar. Among those detained were the father of Rafa'a Salameh, the commander of Hamas's Rafah Brigade, and the son of Husni Hamdan, another senior Hamas commander.
The IDF conducted raids in the tunnel network seen in the October 10 footage, situated under a cemetery in the Bani Suheila area of Khan Younis. According to Hagari, the tunnels contained bedrooms of senior Hamas officials and the office of the commander of the Khan Younis Brigade's Eastern Battalion, who directed the October 7 attack.
