Hamas sources revealed yesterday (Saturday) that Israel was close to capturing Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar at least five times before he was killed in clashes with IDF forces in the Tel al-Sultan neighborhood of Rafah.
The sources, who spoke to the London-based Arabic-language newspaper Asharq Al-Awsat, presented a detailed picture of what they said were Sinwar's movements and those who accompanied him for more than a year in the Gaza Strip.
As the military operation expanded, above and below ground, Sinwar was forced to provide a safe place for his wife and children away from him, following his persistent pursuit.
"As the military operation in Khan Yunis intensified, Sinwar insisted on staying there and said goodbye several times to his brother Muhammad and Rafa Salameh, the Khan Yunis brigade commander who was assassinated last July alongside Mohammed Deif," the source recounted.
The sources claim IDF forces were dozens of meters away from the house where Sinwar was staying alone in the "G" neighborhood of Khan Yunis, accompanied only by a bodyguard who helped him hide.
They said Sinwar "was armed and prepared for possible Israeli forces to storm the house he was in and confront them if they approached it, but Hamas movements from one house to another led to street battles with IDF forces, which exposed Sinwar's presence inside the house to the forces."
Sinwar was then immediately removed from the house through the break-ins prepared by Hamas operatives in nearby houses, and then transferred to a safe house one kilometer from where he was staying.
Before his assassination, Sinwar and his companions suffered from food shortages, especially during the past three days when they did not eat at all. "They were preparing for a confrontation with IDF forces, so they moved to several nearby buildings that were damaged and moved between them," they said.
The were attempts by the commander of the Tel a-Sultan Battalion, Mahmoud Hamdan, who was assassinated alongside Sinwar, to get the Hamas leader to safety, but these failed due to the intensity of the military operations in the area.
"Many times IDF forces approached Sinwar's whereabouts, you can count at least five times, including three times above the ground and twice below. Each time due to different circumstances, he was transferred to other places despite insisting on participating in the hostilities, and he did so several times before being removed from places where there were exchanges of fire," they claimed.