Hamas confirms death of its leader

The Palestinian group has acknowledged Yahya Sinwar has been killed in combat by Israeli forces in Gaza

The Palestinian militant group Hamas has acknowledged the death of its leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza, praising him as a “holy warrior” and “fallen martyr.”

The announcement was made by a senior Hamas official, Khalil Hayya, in a televised address on Friday. Sinwar has “sacrificed his life to the cause of our liberation,” Hayya stated, describing the late leader of the group as a “steadfast, brave and intrepid” man.

”He met his end standing brave, with his head held high, holding his firearm, firing until the last breath, until the last moment of his life,” he added.

The death of Sinwar “will only increase the strength and resilience” of Hamas, with the group eager to continue with its activities “until the establishment of the Palestinian state on all Palestinian soil with Jerusalem as its capital,” Hayya claimed.

READ MORE: IDF releases VIDEO of ‘Sinwar’s last moments’

The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) announced the death of the Hamas leader on Thursday, releasing drone footage of what it described as Sinwar’s “final moments.” The video purportedly shows Sinwar, badly wounded, inside a bombed-out building somewhere in Gaza. While the Israeli military did not elaborate, local media reports suggested the Hamas chief was killed during an “unplanned operation” in the Rafah area in southern Gaza.

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