Israel discovers body of Hamas leader in tunnel in Gaza

Jerusalem [Israel], June 9: The Israeli military says it has found the body of Hamas military leader Mohammed Sinwar in an underground tunnel beneath a hospital in southern Gaza.
"We found underneath the hospital, right below the emergency room, a building with several rooms. In one of them, we took down Mohammed Sinwar ," Reuters on June 8 quoted Effie Defrin, a spokeswoman for the Israel Defense Forces ( IDF ), as saying.
Mr. Effie Defrin revealed that the body of another senior Hamas leader, Mohammad Shabana, along with several soldiers, was also discovered at the scene. Israel is verifying the identities of the soldiers.
"This is another example of Hamas using civilians as human shields, repeatedly using civilian infrastructure, hospitals," Mr. Defrin accused.
Israeli forces took a group of foreign journalists on a tour of the newly discovered tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis (southern Gaza Strip), which Mr. Defrin described as a major Hamas command and control complex.
IDF spokeswoman Effie Defrin added that during the search of the European Hospital, Israeli forces seized weapons, ammunition, cash and intelligence documents.
In May, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced the death of Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar. Mohammed Sinwar is the younger brother of Yahya Sinwar, who was killed by Israeli forces in southern Gaza in October 2024.
Meanwhile, Mr. Mohammad Shabana is one of Hamas's most senior and experienced commanders in southern Gaza. He played a key role in building a network of tunnels under the city of Rafah (southern Gaza).
Hamas has not commented on the above information.
More than 54,000 Palestinians have died in the Hamas-Israel conflict, according to health authorities in Gaza. The United Nations has warned that most of Gaza's 2.3 million people are at risk of famine.
The US-Israeli-backed Gaza Humanitarian Fund (GHF) will open three food distribution centers on June 9, according to The Times of Israel. GHF has asked Gazans not to approach the locations before they open. The distribution is currently "organized and running smoothly," the organization said.
Earlier, Israeli forces on June 8 attacked Palestinians on their way to a GHF aid distribution site in southern Gaza, killing four people and wounding several others, according to Reuters citing medical staff in Gaza. The Israeli military said it fired warning shots at a group moving because it believed it posed a threat.
Source: Thanh Nien Newspaper