The Israel Defense Forces (IDF) said Sunday it recovered the body of Hamas military commander Mohammed Sinwar from an underground tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis in southern Gaza.
According to the IDF, Sinwar was killed in a May 13 airstrike targeting the hospital, which it claims was being used by Hamas as an underground command center.
The IDF said it confirmed Sinwar’s identity through DNA testing. Hamas has not publicly acknowledged his death.
Sinwar, 49, took over leadership of Hamas’s Gaza military wing in October 2024 after his brother, Yahya Sinwar, was killed. He was also involved in planning the October 7 attacks that killed about 1,200 people in Israel.
The body of Mohammad Shabana, also known as Mohammad Sabaneh, was found at the same site, according to the IDF. Shabana was the commander of Hamas’s Rafah Brigade.
The IDF said that “several items belonging to Sinwar and Sabaneh were found at the underground tunnel along with additional intelligence findings that were transferred for further investigation.”
Just in case you still had doubts about his identity—here’s Sinwar’s Israeli and Hamas documentation, as well as his driver’s license. pic.twitter.com/InsMzvsIpm
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025
On Sunday, the IDF also released footage that supports its earlier claim that Hamas uses hospitals and tunnels to shield its leadership and infrastructure.
Mohammad Sinwar was responsible for the deaths of countless civilians. He was eliminated in an IDF & ISA strike on May 13.
His body was found beneath the European hospital in Khan Yunis—more proof of how Sinwar, and Hamas, hide behind their civilians and purposely embed… pic.twitter.com/HVSVkCgo1x
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025
According to IDF Spokesperson Brig. Gen. Effie Defrin, troops discovered weapons, ammunition, and large sums of cash inside the underground compound.
🎥 Weapons, cash and ammunition: IDF Spokesperson BG Effie Defrin reveals what was found inside the tunnel beneath the European Hospital in Khan Yunis.
More proof that Hamas leaders weren’t just hiding underground, they were running their terror network from beneath a hospital. pic.twitter.com/gjmJK0Z06N
— Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) June 8, 2025
Israel has long accused Hamas of concealing military assets within civilian infrastructure—a claim repeatedly denied by both Hamas and hospital officials in Gaza.
