Who was Mohammad Sinwar? Hamas confirms death of Gaza military chief months after Israeli claim | World News

As per reports, Hamas did not provide details on Sinwar’s death but published pictures of him along with other deceased leaders and referred to him as a “martyr”.

Following his death, Izz al-Din Haddad, who currently oversees northern Gaza operations, is expected to lead Hamas’ armed wing.

Who was Mohammad Sinwar?

Mohammad Sinwar was the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, the former Hamas chief in Gaza who was one of the masterminds behind the October 7 attacks on southern Israel.

Along with the Gaza military chief, Sinwar also served as the seventh commander of the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades since July 2024.

Yahya Sinwar was killed in 2024 during an Israeli operation in Gaza. Following his death, Yahya Sinwar rose in the ranks of Hamas leadership.

Mohammad Sinwar was often referred to as the “shadow” by Israeli security services as little to zero information was known about him. As per Arab officials, Sinwar operated “behind the scenes”.

Sinwar also reportedly played a key role in the 2006 abduction of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Shalit was held captive till 2011, when he was ultimately freed in exchange of the release of Palestinian prisoners – which included Yahya Sinwar.

Sinwar has also had many assassination attempts launched against him, majorly by Israel. The first was in 2000 during the Second Intifada.

Sinwar was once again targeted in 2006 and 2008. During the 2014 Gaza war, Hamas faked Sinwar’s death to get him under the radar. Israeli intelligence officials believed he was dead until they gathered evidence of his survival nine years later.

Sinwar was again targeted in 2019 and in 2021 along with his brother Yahya Sinwar. The two were eventually killed during the ongoing Gaza war.

Israel carried out assassination in May

In May 2025, Israel carried out a targeted strike in the Gaza Strip as part of its operation to eliminate Sinwar. As per reports, IDF and Shin Bet used bunker-busting bombs and targeted exits of the underground compound beneath the European hospital in southern Gaza.

A few weeks after this strike, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced to the world that Mohammad Sinwar was dead.

Stating that Israel had “eliminated Mohammad Sinwar”, Netanyahu added – “We eliminated tens of thousands of terrorists, Mohammad Deif, Hassan Nasrallah, Yahya Sinwar. In the last two days, we’ve been executing a dramatic plan toward the complete defeat of Hamas. We’re taking control of their food distribution and money machine. This is what destroys their governing capabilities. That’s what we promised.”