The Israel Defense Forces and the country’s domestic security agency Shin Bet have announced that it is investigating whether Hamas terror chief Yahya Sinwar was killed on Thursday in the Gaza Strip.
The agencies said in a joint statement that “During IDF operations in the Gaza Strip, three terrorists were eliminated” and that it was “checking the possibility that one of the terrorists was Yahya Sinwar.”
“In the building where the terrorists were eliminated, there were no signs of the presence of hostages in the area,” they added. “The forces that are operating in the area are continuing to operate with the required caution.”
Referred to by Israel as the Butcher of Khan Younis for his violent and cruel torture methods against his enemies, both Israeli and Palestinian, Sinwar, 60, is widely seen as being behind the massacre of Israeli civilians carried out by thousands of Hamas militants on Oct. 7.
HAMAS NAMES YAHYA SINWAR, MASTERMIND OF OCT. 7 ATTACKS, AS ITS NEW LEADER
An Israel Army Radio report said Thursday that Sinwar may have been killed during a battle with Israeli soldiers.
The soldiers had spotted suspected terrorists in Gaza and opened fire before the individuals fled into a building, according to the report. It added that a tank then fired a shell at the building, causing it to collapse.
When the soldiers went inside to examine the aftermath, they found three bodies – one of which is expected to be Sinwar.
“Regarding recent reports about the identification of the elimination of Yahya Sinwar, the police, IDF, and Shin Bet are working towards full identification. So far, one of many required tests for definitive identification has been conducted,” Israeli police said. “Dental images have been sent to the police forensic lab, and DNA tests are currently underway. Once completed, it will be possible to confirm the elimination.
A U.S. defense official also has told Fox News that Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin was passed a note during an ongoing NATO Defense Ministerial meeting on Sinwar’s potential death. The Israelis, the official says, notified U.S. Department of Defense officials and have passed along photos.
However, Hamas is denying that Sinwar has died. In a statement carried by Iranian media, the terrorist group accused Israel of orchestrating a “systematic campaign aimed at confusing the ranks of the movement and causing chaos and tension in the Palestinian street.”
ISRAEL’S HUNT FOR HAMAS TERROR LEADER YAHYA SINWAR: ‘DEAD MAN WALKING’
Israeli Defense Forces spokesman Lt. Col. Richard Hecht had told reporters last October that “Sinwar is the leader of Hamas in Gaza and he’s a dead man walking.”
“We will get to him, however long it takes… and this war could be long,” he said.
Sinwar was believed to be somewhere in the Palestinian enclave but hidden deep underground in the warren of tunnels Hamas uses to transport weapons and fighters and where they may even be keeping the hostages, was born in the Khan Younis refugee camp when the area was part of Egypt.
According to multiple sources, he was always a militant activist and joined Hamas not long after its founding in 1987. Two years later, he was arrested by Israel for his involvement in the abduction and killing of two Israelis, as well as the torturing and murder of four Palestinians he considered to be collaborators.
Sentenced to life in prison, Sinwar ended up serving 22 years in an Israeli jail and was eventually released as part of a prisoner exchange for the abducted Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011.
“Sinwar has been active since the early days of Hamas,” Kobi Michael, a senior researcher at the Institute for National Security Studies in Tel Aviv, previously told Fox News Digital. “In jail, he became a prominent leader of Hamas prisoners and was a very influential figure among all Palestinian prisoners.”
After being returned to Gaza as part of the Shalit deal, Sinwar became a popular leader in Hamas, an affiliate of the Muslim Brotherhood, and in 2017 was elected by secret ballot to replace the incumbent political leader, Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Iran this July.
Following Haniyeh’s death, Sinwar was named Hamas’ new leader.
Fox News’ Yonat Friling and Liz Friden contributed to this report.
