Tel Aviv

]Chilling details have been revealed about the killing of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar in an intelligence-based ground raid in southern Gaza on Thursday (Oct 17). US broadcaster CNN reported that the Israeli Defense Forces (IDF) troops had chopped off Sinwar’s fingers to confirm that the Hamas chief was dead.

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The autopsy report

According to the report, the IDF soldiers cut off Sinwar’s fingers for the dead body’s DNA profiling and matching it with previous records that Israel maintained when he was jailed in the Jewish country for two decades, until he was released in 2011 in a prisoner-swap deal.

Chen Kugel, chief pathologist at Israel National Center of Forensic Medicine, revealed how Israel was able to confirm that the dead body indeed belonged to Sinwar. CNN quoted Kugel as saying, “After the laboratory made the profile, we compared it with the profile that Sinwar had in the term that he was serving here as a prisoner, so then we could finally identify him by his DNA."

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The pathologist added that earlier they wanted to identify him with teeth but that didn’t work out.

‘Sinwar died of bullet in the head’

Kugel confidently said Sinwar died of a bullet that pierced his head, despite being hit by a tank shell.

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The IDF had earlier fired a tank round at the hideout where the Israelis believed the Hamas leader may have been camping. Later, to confirm causalities, they sent a drone inside the wrecked building and later troops.

Also read: Hamas confirms killing of leader Yahya Sinwar

Videos and photos posted by the IDF reveal a part of Sinwar’s skull had blown off, which confirms Kugel’s assessment that the Hamas chief died of the bullet to the head.

What next?

While Hamas has vowed to continue the fight against Israel, it is believed that Sinwar’s brother, Mohammad Sinwar, may now take up the bigger role at the militant group.

Watch: Israel-Hamas War: Who Will Be The Next Hamas Leader After Yahya Sinwar's Killing?

However, the IDF on Friday announced that it was actively hunting for Mohammad following Yahya’s death.

(With inputs from agencies)