US intelligence places Sinwar hiding in tunnels under Khan Younis — report

Hamas's Gaza Strip leader Yahya Sinwar in a tunnel in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, October 10, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)
Hamas's Gaza Strip leader Yahya Sinwar in a tunnel in southern Gaza's Khan Younis, October 10, 2023. (Israel Defense Forces)

US intelligence officials believe Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar is hiding in underground tunnels in the Khan Younis area, CNN reports.

According to an anonymous source cited by CNN, CIA Director Bill Burns also told a closed-door meeting over the weekend that the Hamas leader is coming under increasing pressure from commanders in the terror group’s military wing to accept a hostage-ceasefire deal and end the ongoing war in Gaza.

The CIA declines to comment on the report.

In May, two officials told The Times of Israel that recent intelligence assessments had placed Sinwar under the Khan Younis area, some five miles north of Rafah.

Israel has made eliminating Sinwar a key element of its goal to destroy Hamas.

In February, the IDF released footage of what it said was Sinwar walking through a tunnel with several family members, the first time he was apparently spotted since going into hiding before the devastating October 7 onslaught he’s accused of orchestrating in southern Israel, triggering the ongoing war in Gaza.

Jacob Magid contributed to this report. 

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