Hamas military leader Yahya Sinwar Photo: Getty Images
Brigadier General Dan Goldfuss, acting commander of the Israel Defense Forces’ (IDF) 98th Division, told Israel’s Channel 12 in an interview that Israeli forces were on the verge of capturing Yahya Sinwar, the Hamas leader believed to have masterminded the attack on Israel October 7.
“We were very close to it. Our troops penetrated his underground complex, but he barely managed to escape,” Goldfus noted. He added that the soldiers found a lot of money and weapons, as well as warm coffee left behind, showing how close they were to capturing one of the world’s most wanted terrorists.
The general clarified that Israeli soldiers arrived literally a few minutes after Sinwar disappeared. During the interview, a photograph taken on October 10, 2023 in the Khan Yunis tunnel was shown, illustrating the extent of the underground network used by Hamas.
Yahya Sinwar, who was recently appointed as the new leader of Hamas after the death of Ismail Haniyeh in Tehran, became the mastermind behind the bloodiest attack on Jews since the Holocaust. His appointment came amid rising tensions in the Middle East.
The death of Haniya in Iran and the killing of senior Hezbollah military commander Fuad Shukr in Beirut, believed to be carried out by Israel, have heightened fears that the conflict in Gaza could escalate into a wider war in the region.
Israel’s army chief, Herzi Halevi, vowed to find and eliminate Yahya Sinwar as he continued operations against Hamas.
