Hamas has officially confirmed the deaths of five senior leaders in what reports say is one of the biggest blows to the terror organization since the start of the Gaza war.
In a statement released on Monday by the group’s armed wing, the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas said that Mohammed al-Sinwar, the brother of former Hamas leader Yahya al-Sinwar, was killed during Israeli military operations in Gaza, according to the Jerusalem Post.
Al-Sinwar had risen to a senior role within the organization and was widely seen as a key figure in Hamas’s war command following the deaths of other top commanders.
The Israeli military also said in May that he was killed in an airstrike on a Hamas command center beneath the European Hospital in Khan Younis.
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Hamas officially acknowledged the deaths of senior figures, including Abu Obeida, the longtime masked spokesman. (Reuters)
Hamas did not immediately specify the exact date of his death but acknowledged that he had been killed earlier this year.
Hamas also confirmed the death of Abu Obeida, the longtime masked spokesman for the al-Qassam Brigades, who became the public face of the group’s military wing during the war. Reuters.
In its announcement, Hamas revealed for the first time that his real name was Hudhayfa Samir Abdullah al-Kahlout.
According to Israeli statements, Abu Obeida was killed in an Israeli attack on Gaza City in late August.
While Israel had previously announced his death, Monday’s statement marked the first official confirmation by Hamas itself.
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DEIR AL BALAH, GAZA: Al-Qassam Brigades, the military wing of Hamas, hands over Israeli hostages on Saturday, February 22, 2025. (Ashraf Amra/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Among the other senior figures confirmed dead was Raed Saad, a senior commander within the al-Qassam Brigades, the Times of Israel reported.
Israel had announced on December 13 that Saad had been killed in a targeted attack after months of monitoring his movements through Gaza’s tunnel network.
Israeli security officials described Saad as one of the key planners of the October 7, 2023, attack, which killed about 1,200 people and took more than 250 hostage.
Hamas also acknowledged the deaths of Mohammed Shabanah, the head of its Rafah Brigade, and Hakam al-Issa, a veteran commander and one of the founders of the al-Qassam Brigades.
Israel says both men were killed in separate airstrikes in Gaza earlier this year, with al-Issa killed during attacks on Gaza City’s Sabra neighborhood.
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President Donald Trump listens as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during an arrival at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Florida, on Monday, December 29, 2025. (Alex Brandon/AP)
The confirmations came despite a ceasefire that came into effect in October.
Speaking Monday after meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida, President Trump also warned that Hamas must disarm itself quickly or face dire consequences.
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“They will have a very short period of time to disarm,” Trump said.
The president added that the next phase of the Gaza peace plan could move forward quickly if Hamas lays down its arms.
