Israeli commandos raided a tunnel complex in Gaza’s Khan Yunis in late January as part of their efforts to locate Yahya Sinwar, only to discover that the Hamas leader had left his underground bunker just days earlier.
New details of the pursuit are reported by the New York Times (NYT).
The United States (U.S.) and Israeli officials told the U.S. paper that Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops found documents and approximately $1 million in shekels, but there was no sign of where Sinwar had gone.
The NYT’s reporting sheds light on the ongoing manhunt for the man many consider the architect of Hamas’ October 7th surprise attack. Sinwar has long been a target of Israeli security forces, long before he became Hamas leader following the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran in late July.
Comparing Sinwar’s case to Osama bin Laden’s, the NYT reported that the search for the Hamas leader is “more complex and even more difficult” since he continues to lead Hamas in a military campaign with Israel, unlike bin Laden who mostly concentrated on concealing his location after the attacks September 11th.
According to the NYT, Sinwar remains in contact with other Hamas members, including those responsible for negotiations with Israel, through couriers. The Shin Bet security service has been tasked with locating Sinwar, and US intelligence agencies are also said to be assisting Israel.
The U.S. has supplied Israel with ground-penetrating radar. An anonymous senior Israeli official told the newspaper that the intelligence support provided by the U.S. was “invaluable”.
The NYT report also said that during the early months of the war, Sinwar continued to use cellphones and satellite phones, which allowed Israeli and American spy agencies to monitor some of his conversations. To that end, the report said, Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant wanted to resupply Gaza with fuel to power the generators that keep the grid running.
U.S. officials believe that the capture or death of Sinwar “would unequivocally have a dramatic impact on the war,” according to the NYT, with some of those officials believing that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will point to it as proof that Israel has dismantled Hamas.
However, the NYT reports that it is not clear how the killing of Sinwar would affect negotiations with Israel over the release of the prisoners.
