Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar ‘very likely dead’, says Israel – watch live

At least 28 Palestinians, including children, died in an airstrike on a school in Jabalia, northern Gaza, on Thursday, according to the Hamas-run Health Ministry. Hamas denied IDF claims that the group was using the Abu Hussein School as a military base.

Israeli Army Radio reports that Sinwar may have been killed when an Israeli tank fired on a residential building in the early hours of Thursday morning after “suspicious movements” were detected on an upper floor.

Later Thursday morning, a face resembling Sinwar’s was spotted by IDF drones and soldiers scanning the rubble.

Yair Lapid, opposition leader in Israel, has called on the government to “take the opportunity to take a decisive step” regarding the hostages. In a post on

The Hostage Families Forum, founded by relatives of those abducted by Hamas on October 7, said the likely “elimination” of Yahya Sinwar was an “important milestone” but that efforts should now focus on freeing the hostages .

The group said: “Along with recognition for the significant achievement [of Sinwar’s death]The families of the hostages express their deep concern for and demand the fate of the 101 hostages still held by Hamas in Gaza [the Israeli government] Use the military achievement to reach an immediate agreement that will bring about their return.”

Of the 101 hostages, 33 are said to have died.

John Healey, the defense secretary, said that confirming Sinwar’s death was a matter for the Israel Defense Forces, but added: “For my part, I will not mourn the death of a terrorist leader like Sinwar, who was responsible for the terror attack.” October 7th.

“I am aware, as is the British government, that this not only triggered the darkest and deadliest day for the Jewish people since the Second World War, but also triggered more than a year of conflict and an unbearable number of civilian Palestinian casualties.” So .”

An official from a Christian political party in Beirut has urged the situation in Lebanon and the Gaza Strip to be kept secret – particularly criticizing Hezbollah.

When it was announced that Yahya Sinwar may have been killed, the official, who is part of the Lebanese Armed Forces, said: “Whether it is confirmed or not… since day one we have said that we must separate Lebanon from Gaza.”

“Let the events in Gaza develop for Gaza itself and let Lebanon itself develop its priorities and its own interests.” And that is what the whole rest of the world is doing, except Hezbollah in Lebanon. Let us not link our two destinies.

“What interests us is what should happen to Lebanon. Lebanon must end such a situation immediately because the war is ravaging the entire country.”

Yahya Sinwar’s life was saved in prison by an Israeli dentist who opposed the release of the dangerous radical as part of the exchange for hostage Gilad Shalit. How was he able to avoid the fate of his fellow jihadists for so long?

• Read in full: Hamas’ Last Standing Man

Yoav Gallant, Israel’s defense minister, posted a photo on X with images of two killed Hamas leaders. Hassan Nasrallah was the militants’ leader, and Mohammed Deif led the group’s military wing. Her images, superimposed with red crosses, flank an empty frame with the same cross.

In his post he quoted a Bible passage: “‘You will pursue your enemies and they will fall by the sword before you.’ – Leviticus 26.”

Gallant added: “Our enemies cannot hide. We will pursue and eliminate them.”

Ministers in Israel’s security cabinet, which includes Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, were told that Sinwar was “very likely dead,” Reuters reports.

Israel Army Radio said the incident that may have killed Sinwar occurred during a ground operation in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip in which Israeli troops killed three militants and seized their bodies.

Visual evidence suggested one of the men was likely Sinwar and DNA testing was carried out. Israel has samples of Sinwar’s DNA from his time in an Israeli prison.

Benjamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, has approved the targets for retaliatory strikes against Iran, ABC News has been told. An attack has been expected since Tehran fired a barrage of more than 200 ballistic missiles into Israel on October 1.

Netanyahu reportedly told President Biden that Israeli forces would not attack Iranian nuclear sites or oil infrastructure. But U.S. officials say they do not view Israel’s assurances as a guarantee and that circumstances could change.

At least 28 people, including several children, were killed in an Israeli air strike on the Abu Hussein School in Jabalia in the north of the Gaza Strip, the region’s health ministry said. Mehdad Abbas, a spokesman for the Hamas-run ministry, said: “There is no water to put out the fire. There’s nothing there. This is a massacre. Civilians and children are killed and burned under fire.”

The Israeli military claimed dozens of Hamas and Islamic Jihad militants were operating from the school and were targeted. Precautions were taken to mitigate the damage to civilians, the military said, accusing Hamas of using them as human shields.

Fares Abu Hamza, head of the Health Ministry’s emergency unit in northern Gaza, said Kamal Adwan Hospital was struggling to treat the injured. “Many women and children are in critical condition,” he said.

Several other Hamas leaders were killed during the year-long war. In January, an Israeli drone strike on the southern suburbs of Beirut killed Hamas deputy chief Saleh al-Arouri, who was also the founder of the Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’s military wing.

In July, Ismail Haniyeh, the group’s political leader, was killed when a device believed to have been planted by Israeli intelligence agents exploded at his residence in Tehran. Later that month, Mohammed Deif, believed to be one of the masterminds of the October 7 attack that sparked the latest Gaza war, died after Israeli warplanes attacked the southern town of Khan Younis.

Previous speculation about Sinwar’s death has proven inaccurate and he resumed contact with ceasefire brokers earlier this month after a period of silence.

The last known footage of Sinwar shows a hunched man walking through a tunnel under Gaza accompanied by his wife and children.

The video was accessed by Israeli soldiers during a raid on Gaza earlier this year, but is believed to be from the days immediately following the October 7 attacks.

In his announcement, the IDF spokesman said: “During the IDF operations in the Gaza Strip, three terrorists were eliminated. The IDF and the ISA [the Israel Securities Authority, or Shin Bet] are investigating the possibility that one of the terrorists was Yahya Sinwar. At this time the identity of the terrorists cannot be confirmed.”

“In the building where the terrorists were eliminated, there were no signs of the presence of hostages in the area. The emergency services working on site continue to act with due caution. More details to follow.”