Tel Aviv [Israel], December 7 (ANI/TPS): Hamas leader in the Gaza Strip Yahya Sinwar, considered one of the masterminds of the October 7 massacre, may try to escape into Egypt through entry points under mosques, according to Israeli media reports. Hamas’s Religious Endowment Ministry recently ordered the opening of mosques to accept displaced persons. At least five of them are near Gaza’s border with the Egyptian Sinai.
The mosques have tunnels under them leading across the corridor into Egypt, Channel 12 reported on Wednesday, suggesting that they could provide an escape route for Sinwar and other senior Hamas leadership.
“An explicit directive from the Hamas government to the mosques to open their doors to displaced persons has not been given until now in any of the days of the war. Therefore, the directive it issued regarding the Rafah mosques needs to arouse interest,” Channel 12 reported.
The city of Rafah is the site of the Rafah Border Crossing, the sole official crossing point with Egypt from the Gaza Strip. Asked by the Tazpit Press Service about Israel‘s efforts to keep tabs on the border, Prime Minister’s Office spokesman Eylon Levy said that Israel could not comment on the “various intelligence means” it is using to target Sinwar and others. “We certainly will continue making every effort to bring them to justice and to get our hands on all of the monsters responsible for the October 7 massacre,” he said. (ANI/TPS)
Benjamin Netanyahu says ‘only matter of time’ before Hamas chief found
Tel Aviv [Israel], December 7 (ANI/TPS): Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday evening released a statement clarifying two points. One dealt with Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, now that the IDF (Israel Defense Forces) has surrounded the area in southern Gaza where he was believed to be located.
“Last night I said that our forces could go anywhere in the Gaza Strip,” said Netanyahu. “They are currently surrounding Sinwar’s house. His home is not his castle, and he can flee, but it is only a matter of time until we find him.” In other words, Sinwar can run, but he cannot hide.
His second statement concerned getting the Red Cross to visit the Israeli hostages held in Gaza. “To this end,” he said, “I spoke with the President of the Red Cross again today and I told her to turn to Qatar since it has been proven that they have leverage over Hamas, and demand Red Cross visits with our hostages and, of course, the provision of medicines for them.” (ANI/TPS)
