US official says Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's days are numbered: report
Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar's days appeared to be “numbered,” a senior U.S. official said Thursday.
“I think it’s safe to say his days are numbered. I also think it’s safe to say it doesn’t matter how long this takes,” the official said, according to Portal.
“I also think it's safe to say that it doesn't matter how long it takes…justice will be served,” the senior administration official added, noting that Sinwar has “American blood on his hands,” reported the Times of Israel.
Israel has accused Sinwar of being the mastermind behind the terror group's October 7 attack, which killed around 1,200 people and left around 240 people prisoner. Recently, leaflets were dropped in the Gaza Strip offering $1 million in cash rewards for information leading to the capture of Hamas' top leaders.
A $400,000 reward is being offered for Sinwar.
Israeli forces have been working for weeks to track down Sinwar and his cohorts. In early December they surrounded his home in southern Gaza, but he is believed to have sought refuge somewhere in the labyrinth of Hamas tunnels beneath Khan Younis, the largest city in southern Gaza.
Sinwar is known in Israel as the “Butcher of Khan Younis” for his violent and cruel torture methods against his enemies, both Israelis and Palestinians.
A long-time militant activist, Sinwar joined Hamas shortly after its founding in 1987. Two years later, he was arrested by Israel for his involvement in the kidnapping and murder of two Israelis and the torture and murder of four Palestinians whom he considered to be an associate.
Sinwar was sentenced to life in prison, eventually served 22 years in an Israeli prison, and was eventually released as part of a prisoner swap for kidnapped Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit in 2011.
Fox News Digital's Chris Pandolfo and Ruth Marks Eglash contributed to this report.