Israel concerned Sinwar fled to Egypt with Hamas hostages - report

Yahya Sinwar, leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, attends a rally marking the anniversary of Land Day, in Gaza City on March 30, 2022

A security official claimed that Israel has information indicating that the Hamas leaders, including Yahya Sinwar and his brother, recently managed to escape through tunnels between Rafah and Egyptian territory, with the main concern being that they fled with captives, the Saudi newspaper Elaph reported on Tuesday.

The same security source mentioned that Israel has been watching in recent years around ten large tunnels that can hold cars and small trucks in the area. It was also reported that in Israel, they believe that Hamas smuggled Iranian weapons, including missiles and technological devices, through these tunnels, in addition to smuggling terrorists through Sinai for training in Iran and Lebanon. The newspaper sought a response from an IDF spokesperson, who dismissed the allegations.

Meanwhile, last week, a former associate of Sinwar and his former jailmate in Israeli prison, Asmat Mansour, stated that the October 7 Hamas attacks were supposed to be “a strategic operation designed to remove the Israeli siege on the territory, release Sinwar’s associates from prison, and turn him into the leader of the Palestinian people.”

However, according to Mansour, “the calculations did not go as planned,” and the Israeli response was “unbridled, without any justification,” and “now we have this result,” he explained, referring to the ongoing Israel-Hamas War.

Yahya Sinwar highlighted in a video published by the IDF on February 13, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)

Yahya Sinwar highlighted in a video published by the IDF on February 13, 2024 (credit: IDF SPOKESPERSON’S UNIT)

“[Sinwar] did not expect that the operation would lead to such complicated matters, isolate him, and become so dangerous. He gave Israel all the reasons and excuses to break all the rules.” In a speech from Ramallah, Mansour added, “I think he was one of the main people behind this operation.”

He argued that if Sinwar knew what the consequences of the attack would be, he “would never have planned an operation like this.” Mansour, who sat in prison with Sinwar, said that the Hamas leader “wanted to make a change.”

Channel 12 News commentator Ehud Yaari referred to the possibility that Sinwar had fled with hostages, assessing Sinwar’s actions, stating, “The hostages were taken by different squads of Hamas, each squad taking the captives to their own location. Sinwar is sure he can escape. If he manages to flee to Egypt through the tunnel, he will not be accepted there with open arms.”