Yahya Sinwar, who was the acting chief of Hamas in Gaza, was killed on Wednesday (October 16). His autopsy has now revealed that the Palestinian leader, who succeeded Ismail Haniyeh after the latter's death, died due to a gunshot wound to the head. Dr Chen Kugel from Israel's national forensic institute, who oversaw the autopsy provided information to The New York Times. He said that at the time of the death, Sinwar's right arm was smashed.
The doctor told the news outlet that a small missile or tank shell may have hit Sinwar earlier and have injured his arm. In an effort to stop the bleeding Sinwar tried to use an electrical wire to stanch the blood flow.
“But it wouldn’t have worked in any case,” said Dr Kugel, as quoted by The New York Times.
“It wasn’t strong enough, and his forearm was smashed.”
It is not yet clear who fired the shot that killed Sinwar.
A video showing Sinwar's final moments appeared online after his death. It was reported that the video was released by Israel.
Israel made the mistake of publishing footage of Yahya Sinwar's last moments.
— Dan Cohen (@dancohen3000) October 17, 2024
Wearing a kufiyyeh and severely injured, he threw a stick at the drone filming him – a final act of defiance against the Zionist occupation.
In his death, he became a legend. pic.twitter.com/bHEpPSY9TD
Sinwar's killing is a fresh blow to Hamas after Israel's relentless, and successful, attempts to paralyze the militant group's chain of command by eliminating its top leaders.
Hamas struck a defiant note after it confirmed Sinwar's death on Friday in a televised eulogy.
Khalil-al-Hayya, the longtime deputy of Sinwar said that the militant outfit is continuing on its path.
"Banner will not fall," he said.
Yahya Sinwar played a key role in orchestrating the October 7, 2023 attack during which Hamas militants crossed the border from Gaza into southern Israel and killed upto 1200 people.