The leader of Hamas, Yahya Sinwar, was killed by a gunshot wound to the head, according to the director of Israel’s national forensic institute, Dr. Chen Kugel, who oversaw the autopsy and described its findings in an interview with The New York Times on Friday.
He said that shrapnel, possibly from either a small missile or tank shell, had earlier hit Mr. Sinwar’s arm, causing bleeding that he was trying to stanch by using an electrical cord as an impromptu tourniquet. “But it wouldn’t have worked in any case,” Mr. Kugel said. “It wasn’t strong enough, to stop the bleeding.”
Several points remained unclear, including who fired the shot, when and with what weapon.
Dr Kugel said that Sinwar’s autopsy was conducted 24 to 36 hours after his death. After it was completed, the body was handed over to the Israeli military, which may have moved it to an undisclosed location.
Sinwar’s identity was confirmed through a DNA test. The doctor told CNN that his finger was cut off and sent for testing by the Israeli army.
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 identify him finally by his DNA,” Dr Kugel said.
Mohammad Sinwar expected to lead Hamas
Following Sinwar’s death, Hamas is now searching for a new political leader based outside Gaza. Mohammad Sinwar, Yahya’s brother, is expected to assume greater control of the group’s war efforts against Israel in the region.