Israel "Sinwar fled the earth the night before the October 7 raid"

The Israeli military claimed that Yahya Sinwar, the head of Hamas, a Palestinian militant group that was recently killed, fled to a tunnel the day before the Israeli attack on October 7 last year.

"Even on the eve of the brutal slaughter, Sinwar was busy for himself and his family's survival," the Israeli military said, releasing closed-circuit television footage showing alleged members of Sinwar and his family.

The 3-minute, 9-second excerpt, which was recorded from 10:44 p.m. on October 6, 2023, to 1:32 a.m. the next day, recorded Sinwar, a woman and two children moving bottled water, bedding, food and TV inside the underground cave.

The Israeli military said it had secured the footage in Gaza several months ago.

Video footage of Sinwar aiming and shelling Sinwar inside the ground building at the time of the shooting on the 16th was also released.

Previously released drone footage showed masked Sinwar resisting by throwing a stick with his other arm with injuries shortly before his death.

The Israeli military appears to have released the video after Sinwar, who died after resisting to the end, showed signs of becoming a hero in the Arab world.

Israel's military has also distributed leaflets printed with images of Sinwar's body in southern Gaza, demanding Hamas surrender.

The leaflet printed an image of one arm of Sinwar, whose fingers were cut off, surrounded by the rubble of the collapsed building.

Also, in Arabic, "Yahiya Sinwar ruined your lives. He was hiding in a dark tunnel and was removed as he tried to run away in fear. If you lay down your weapons and return your hostages, anyone can leave and live in peace," he wrote.

The phrase was taken from a statement issued by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu after Sinwar's death was confirmed on the 17th.

Sinwar was the architect of Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 last year and was the target of Israel's "first removal".

After killing three Hamas members in southern Gaza on the 16th, the Israeli military identified one of the bodies as Sinwar through genetic analysis.