UN ID, fake passport, mint: What IDF found on Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar's body

Some cash, weapons, passport and Mentos mint were among those found on Yahya Sinwar's body by the Israel military. (Courtesy: X | @TugaVerso)

Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli forces in a military operation in southern Gaza on October 17. According to reports, Israeli troops appeared to have run across him in a battle, only to discover later that one of the bodies in the rubble was of the man who has topped Israel's most-wanted list for over a year.

An Israeli security official confirmed it appeared that the man who turned out to be Sinwar was killed in a battle, and "not in a planned targeted airstrike".

While Sinwar's killing is a huge blow to Hamas, Israel considers it as a massive achievement as he was believed to be the chief architect of Hamas' October 7 (2023) attack on southern Israel. Leaders in Israel, in fact, celebrated the top Hamas leader's killing as a settling of scores just over a year after Hamas-led militants killed at least 1,200 people in Israel and kidnapped 250 others.

Yahya Sinwar, Israel's number one enemy, was named the top leader of Hamas after Ismail Haniyeh's assassination in Tehran in July in an apparent Israeli strike.

What IDF recovered?

According to Israeli military spokesperson Rear Admiral Daniel Hagari, Sinwar was only identified as a fighter, but upon entering the ruined building troops found him with weapons, a jacket and some cash among others. As per pictures going viral on social media, here's what the Israeli Defense Force(IDF) found on the top Hamas leader's body:

Cash worth 40,000 shekels ($10,731.63)
A United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) ID
A fake passport
Several weapons including AK-47
An Arabic magazine
A pack of Mentos mint
A lighter & a pack of tissues
Chanting/prayer beads

| Lder do Hamas, Sinwar, capturado com itens comprometedores! Yahya Sinwar, lder do Hamas, foi localizado por tropas israelenses carregado de dinheiro, passaportes falsos, armas e itens pessoais peculiares, como uma revista em rabe, lenos e at um crach da ONU! pic.twitter.com/L50YlyBwjY
Sobreviver no TugaVerso (@TugaVerso) October 18, 2024

Who was Yahya Sinwar?

Israel has publicly accused Sinwar of being the 'mastermind' behind Hamas' terror attack against Israel on October 7, 2023. However, experts believe he is likely one of several – making him one of the key targets of its war in Gaza.

Born in a refugee camp in 1962 in Khan Younis, southern Gaza, Sinwar joined Hamas in the late 1980s, rising quickly through its ranks. He founded Hamas' feared international intelligence security branch 'Majd'. In 2017, Hamas elected Sinwar as the political chief of its main decision-making body, the Politburo, in Gaza.

In 2018, under Sinwar’s leadership, Hamas launched its “March of Return” campaign, which saw Gazans protest weekly near the Israeli border, calling for Israel to lift their blockade and to allow Palestinians the right to return to their ancestral villages and towns.

He was responsible for restoring Hamas' relationship with Egyptian leaders who were wary of the group’s support for political Islam, and for pulling in continued military funding from Iran, according to research by the European Council on Foreign Relations.

In 2015, Sinwar was designated a global terrorist by the US Department of State and the European Union. In recent years, he has been sanctioned by the United Kingdom and France.