'No US forces directly involved': Pentagon clarifies role in Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar’s death
Yahya Sinwar
Days after Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar was killed by Israeli troops in the southern Gaza city of Rafah, the US military on Thursday (Oct 17) clarified that it had no direct involvement in the Israeli operation that resulted in the death of the militant group's leader.
However, the Pentagon revealed that American intelligence did play a supporting role.
Sinwar was killed in a firefight that ended with the Hamas leader cornered and alone in a destroyed building.
An Israeli operation
Air Force Major General Patrick Ryder, a Pentagon spokesperson, emphasised that the mission was entirely an Israeli effort.
"This was an Israeli operation. There (were) no USforces directly involved," he said.
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However, he acknowledged that US intelligence had contributed and said,"The United States has helped contribute information and intelligence as it relates to hostage recovery and the tracking and locating of Hamas leaders who have been responsible for holding hostages. And so certainly that contributes in general to the picture".
"But again, this was an Israeli operation. And I would refer you to them to talk about the details of how the operation went down," added the Pentagon spokesperson.
The Pentagon's clarification comes after US President Joe Biden, in a statement mentioned authorising US special operations and intelligence assistance to aid Israel's search for Sinwar and other militant leaders after the Hamas assault on October 7, 2023.
Also read |Who was Yahya Sinwar? The ‘Butcher of Khan Younis’ Israeli forces killed after year-long pursuit
Who was Yahya Sinwar?
Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar as per Israel was the mastermind behind the Oct 7 attack.
Born in Khan Younis in 1962, Sinwar was seen as one of theuncompromising top officials of the Palestinian militant group, Hamas. In the early 1980s, Sinwar was repeatedly arrested by Israel because of his involvement in anti-occupation activism held at the Islamic University in Gaza.
"The mass murderer Yahya Sinwar, who is responsible for the massacre and atrocities of October 7, was killed today by IDF soldiers," said Israel's Foreign Minister, Israel Katz, in a statement on Thursday.
The IDFreleased a statement saying,"Yahya Sinwar was eliminated after hiding for the past year behind the civilian population of Gaza, both above and below ground in Hamas tunnels in the Gaza Strip."
(With inputs from agencies)
