Shin Bet Denies the Death of Yahya Sinwar

The General Security Service “Shin Bet” denied the death of the head of Hamas’ political bureau, Yahya Sinwar, following media reports suggesting that Tel Aviv was investigating the possibility of his assassination during one of the Israeli army’s raids on Gaza in recent months, according to Hebrew media on Sunday evening. These reports come amid dwindling hopes for a possible agreement to end the war in Gaza due to the conditions set by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Channel 13 (private) reported briefly that “Tel Aviv is examining the possibility that Sinwar was killed in one of the Israeli raids, but this likelihood is currently low.” It added that unnamed senior Israeli military officials stated, “There is no intelligence information confirming his elimination.” Meanwhile, the Israeli website “Walla” revealed that the Shin Bet denied reports of the Hamas leader’s death, believing he is still alive.

Earlier on Sunday, Netanyahu said that military pressure on the Secretary-General of Lebanon’s Hezbollah, Hassan Nasrallah, would help force Sinwar to sit at the negotiating table to strike a prisoner exchange deal and agree to a ceasefire in Gaza.

Six days ago, the Hamas leader sent a message to the leader of the Houthi group in Yemen, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, in which he congratulated the group on their missiles reaching “the depths of the entity (Israel), bypassing defense layers and interception systems.”

Yahya Sinwar is currently Israel’s most wanted man, following its announcement of the assassination of Mohammed Deif, commander of Hamas’ military wing, the al-Qassam Brigades, on August 1. However, Hamas confirmed that Deif is still alive.

On August 6, Sinwar was elected head of Hamas’ political bureau, succeeding Ismail Haniyeh, whom Hamas and Iran claim was assassinated by Israel during a visit to Tehran at the end of July, while Tel Aviv remained silent.

Before being chosen as the political leader, Sinwar led Hamas in Gaza, which has been subjected to an Israeli war with full U.S. support since October 7.

On the ground, Israeli media reported on Sunday that Netanyahu is considering a plan to impose a siege on Hamas in northern Gaza.

The plan, proposed by retired military commanders and suggested by some members of parliament this month, involves evacuating Palestinian civilians from northern Gaza, which would then be declared a closed military zone.

Under the plan, Israel would trap an estimated 5,000 remaining Hamas fighters under siege until their surrender. Israeli army radio reported that Netanyahu informed lawmakers on the Knesset’s Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee that the plan is under review.

Israel’s public broadcaster (Kan Radio) quoted Netanyahu as saying the plan is “logical” and “one of the plans being considered, though other plans are also on the table.”

Israel faces severe international criticism over the humanitarian crisis resulting from its nearly year-long offensive against Hamas in Gaza, which has displaced most of the territory’s population.

U.N. estimates indicate that a million people, about half the population, are currently living in a designated humanitarian zone that covers less than 15% of Gaza’s area and lacks infrastructure and services.

The U.N. says it is difficult to deliver humanitarian aid to northern Gaza, where an estimated 300,000 to 500,000 people live.

The war began when Hamas-led militants stormed Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking 250 hostages into Gaza, according to Israeli statistics.

The Gaza Ministry of Health reported that over 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the Israeli offensive since then. Health officials in Gaza claim most of the dead are civilians. Israel, which lost 346 soldiers in Gaza, says at least a third of the Palestinian dead are fighters.