The Israeli military has likely killed the leader of Hamas in Gaza, Mohammed Sinwar, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said at a press conference on Wednesday.
Sinwar took over leadership of the terror group in Gaza after Israel killed his brother, Yahya Sinwar, in October. Mohammed is believed to have been killed in one of hundreds of airstrikes that Israel’s air force carried out in Gaza over the weekend, according to the Israel National News.
”We eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists,” said Netanyahu, according to ABC News. “We eliminated the leaders of the murderers Deif, Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar and it appears we also eliminated Mohammed Sinwar,” he said, referencing other top targets in the terror group.
“Our forces are seizing more and more territory in Gaza. At the end of the move, all areas of the Strip will be under Israeli security control,” he continued. “I am ready to end the war on clear terms that will ensure Israel’s security – all the hostages returned home, Hamas lays down its weapons, its leadership is overthrown, Gaza is completely demilitarized and the Trump plan is implemented.”
“Anyone who calls on us to stop the war before these goals are achieved is calling on us to leave Hamas in power,” he said.
Israel has launched a new military operation, “Operation Gideon’s Chariots.” The Israeli military said it struck over 670 Hamas targets in Gaza over the weekend, eliminating weapon storages and underground Hamas infrastructure, as well as killing dozens of terrorists.
Defense Minister Israel Katz told lawmakers in the Knesset on Sunday that, at the time, evidence suggested that Sinwar was killed alongside ten aides and Mohammed Shabana, the commander of Hamas’s Rafah Brigade.
Israeli officials said the latest military operation has seemingly forced Hamas back to the negotiating table, though talks so far have been short of a “breakthrough.”
“There are intense talks in Doha, but there is no breakthrough. We are much more optimistic than we were last week, but it is unclear if there will be a deal,” an Israeli official told the Israel National News on Sunday.
