by Mick the Ram

In a huge development in the on-going war in Gaza, Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar has been killed by members of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF).

Sinwar was regarded as the mastermind of the 7 October slaughter of innocent Israelis and has been pursued for over a year, but he was actually eliminated during what was a routine military operation in the southern Gaza Strip; although intelligence had indicated senior members were in the area.

Soldiers of the 828th Brigade (Bislach) carried out the attack and took out three high ranking terrorists, and it was after inspecting the bodies in the rubble that it became clear that one of them was their number one target.

Israeli officials quickly ran DNA tests and were able to use dental records to confirm they had got their man.

“This is the beginning of the day after Hamas,” Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said and followed that up by calling on those holding Israelis captive in Gaza to lay down their weapons and return the hostages, pledging whoever does so will be allowed to “go out and live.”

The PM remarked that Sinwar’s killing was an “important moment in the war” adding: “Evil has suffered a heavy blow, but the task before us is not yet complete.” He told residents of Gaza that it is now an “opportunity to finally break free from (Hamas’) tyranny.”

He also commended the “heroic soldiers” who undertook the operation and told the families of hostages still held in Gaza that it is “highest commitment” that Israel will continue “with all our strength until the return home of all your loved ones, who are our loved ones.”

US President Joe Biden praised the operation, saying: “This is a good day for Israel, for the United States and for the world”. He confirmed that he would be talking with Mr Netanyahu and other Israeli leaders to congratulate them, to discuss the pathway for bringing the hostages home to their families, and for ending this war once and for all.

Relatives of the hostages also called for their release in a joint statement, demanding: “It is now time for every single hostage held in Gaza to be returned to their families.”