The IDF on Tuesday attempted to assassinate Hamas leader Mohammed Sinwar in a strike on the European Hospital in Khan Yunis in Gaza, sources told The Jerusalem Post.
The military may have used a bunker buster bomb in their attempted attack against Sinwar, defense sources told the Post.
Following the initial attack, the IDF reportedly struck the area where Sinwar was allegedly located a second time, with the objective of preventing the evacuation of casualties, Israeli public broadcaster KAN reported.
Israel reportedly did not update the US prior to the assassination attempt, a source familiar with the details told Ynet. According to the report, the strike was the result of a "sudden opportunity," leading to no time to inform the Americans or consider the timing of US President Donald Trump's speech in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
"We will not allow the Hamas terrorist organization to use hospitals and humanitarian facilities in Gaza as shelters and terrorist headquarters," Defense Minister Israel Katz said. "We will pursue them and their leaders and strike them everywhere."
He added that it was he and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who authorized the IDF to strike the terror infrastructure under Nasser Hospital.
"The operation was carried out following information provided by the IDF and Shin Bet," Katz continued. "The Hamas terrorist organization continues to use various hospitals and humanitarian facilities in Gaza as shelters and terrorist headquarters, while putting the population at risk and committing war crimes."
Security officials have long believed that Mohammed Sinwar replaced his brother, Yahya Sinwar, as the new Hamas leader after his assassination in October. Khalil al-Hayya, Yahya Sinwar's deputy, was believed to have taken on political responsibilities.
בעזה מדווחים על חמש תקיפות בבית החולים האירופי בח'אן יונס | תיעוד@anastasia___stu pic.twitter.com/o4v79iNXj4
— כאן חדשות (@kann_news) May 13, 2025
Earlier on Tuesday, the IDF confirmed that they had struck Nasser Hospital, where Hamas terrorists were operating from within a command and control center.
According to the military, the compound was used by the terrorists to plan and execute terror attacks against Israeli civilians and IDF troops.
Senior Hamas officials continue to use the hospital for terrorist activity through cynical and brutal use of the civilian population in the hospital and its surroundings, the military added.
Prior to the strike, multiple steps were taken to mitigate the risk of harming civilians, including the use of precise munitions, aerial surveillance, and additional intelligence, the military asserted.
Key Hamas terrorist killed in March
In late March, the IDF and Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) struck a key Hamas terrorist who was operating within Nasser Hospital, the Post previously reported.
Ismail Barhoum, a member of Hamas's political bureau in Gaza and head of the organization's finances, was targeted and killed in the operation.
According to a joint statement from the IDF and Shin Bet, the strike was conducted following an intelligence-gathering process and with precise munitions.
An Israeli official told the Post that if Sinwar has indeed been eliminated, it should make it easier to reach a deal. “Sinwar was the most extreme figure in terms of negotiation positions for reaching a deal,” the official said. “If he is out of the picture, it should ease the efforts to reach an agreement.”
The assassination attempt occurred as the Israeli delegation, led by “M” from the Shin Bet and the Coordinator for Prisoners and Missing Persons, Gal Hirsch, arrived in Qatar on Tuesday evening. Trump’s Middle East envoy, Steve Witkoff, and the administration’s envoy for hostage affairs, Adam Boehler, also arrived in Qatar.
Ahead of the negotiations that began on Tuesday, senior Qatari officials met in recent days with Hamas representatives based in Doha. “The message received by the American administration was that, despite Israel’s insistence on a deal that does not include ending the war, Hamas is willing to negotiate even though it has not changed its position,” a source familiar with the details told the Post.
Yonah Jeremy Bob and Amir Bohbot contributed to this report.