Yahya Sinwar dead: Israel confirms it has killed leader of Hamas

Hamas' top leader Yahya Sinwar has been killed said who hopes it will now lead to the release of the hostages.

Confirmation of the death of the chief architect of last year's attack on Israel that sparked the war came after a joint statement from the Defence Forces (IDF) and Israel Securities Authority (ISA) that they were "" that Sinwar, 62, was dead after "three terrorists were eliminated".

Foreign Minister Katz called Sinwar's killing a "military and moral achievement for the Israeli army." In a statement he said: "The assassination of Sinwar will create the possibility to immediately release the hostages and to bring a change that will lead to a new reality in Gaza - without Hamas and without Iranian control."

It is believed Sinwar was killed on Wednesday night in the southern Gaza Strip during a routine patrol by the IDF. Soldiers reportedly came across three armed men and exchanged fire with them before killing them. With leader Sinwar now confirmed to be among the dead, it means Israel has taken out their main target in the that has raged for over a year.

READ MORE:

Graphic photographs circulated on social media, with people claiming they showed the body of Sinwar, however, these have not been verified. In a joint statement on X the IDF and ISA announced earlier that "there were no signs of hostages in the area" of the building "where the terrorists were eliminated".

Sinwar joined Hamas in the early 1980s, before taking a leadership role in the group in 2017. He was the mastermind behind the October 7 attacks, that saw Hamas infiltrating Israel's borders, killing 1,200 people, taking hostages and sparking a devastating year-long battle against Hamas in Gaza.

He is said to have been unrepentant of the October 7 attacks, according to those in contact with him, despite provoking an invasion that has killed tens of thousands of Palestinians, laid waste to his homeland and rained destruction on Hamas' ally, Hezbollah. In what is now more than a year of retribution for the October 7 attack, relentless Israeli bombing of Gaza has resulted in the deaths of more than 40,000 people, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

Israel's military claims to have hit more than 40,000 targets, found 4,700 tunnel shafts and destroyed 1,000 rocket launcher sites during its bombardment. It is widely believed that Sinwar had been hiding in Hamas' extensive tunnel network that runs throughout the Gaza Strip, never staying in one place of roo long and avoiding to communicate, using messengers instead.

Chilling footage emerged earlier this month, claiming to show the leader carrying a bag of dynamite through a narrow tunnel in a desperate attempt to stop Israel from killing him. Moments after the clip ended, Sinwar allegedly surrounded himself with 20 hostages in what is one of the last known sightings of the leader alive.

Sinwar was chosen as the group's top leader following the assassination of Ismael Haniyeh, leader of Hamas' political wing, in July in an apparent Israeli strike in the Iranian capital of Tehran. Haniyeh was blown up, most likely by Israel, while visiting Tehran to attend the inauguration of the Iranian president.