Yahya Sinwar died from gunshot to his head

The autopsy reports of Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar's body revealed that he was killed by a gunshot wound to his head during an intelligence-based ground raid in southern Gaza. 

Sinwar, who led the politburo of Hamas, was found by Israel Defense Forces (IDF) in the Tel al-Sultan area of Rafah. The 828 Brigade of the IDF discovered Sinwar's body during their operation.

According to a report by CNN, Israeli soldiers cut off one of Sinwar's fingers for DNA confirmation. The soldiers reportedly found a body resembling Sinwar's in a hideout and used a DNA profile from his time in an Israeli prison, where he was held for two decades until his release in a 2011 prisoner-swap deal.

Chen Kugel, the chief pathologist at Israel's National Center of Forensic Medicine, confirmed the method used to verify Sinwar's identity, as reported by CNN.

"After the laboratory made the profile, we compared it with the profile that Sinwar had in the term that he was serving here as a prisoner, so then we could finally identify him by his DNA," Kugel told CNN.

The soldiers had initially tried to identify him through his dental records, but this was not conclusive, Kugel said.

Videos circulating on social media show Israeli troops searching the hideout. In one video, two soldiers are seen next to a body, believed to be Sinwar's, with the index finger of the left hand severed.

However, footage circulating on social media shows Sinwar's body was initially seen with all fingers intact and later with one missing.

Kugel also revealed that Sinwar was killed by a gunshot wound to the head. While the Hamas leader had other injuries, including those from a tank shell, Kugel said the fatal wound was caused by the bullet.

Footage posted online shows extensive damage to Sinwar's face, with part of his skull blown off, consistent with the chief pathologist's findings.

Before the raid, Israeli forces reportedly fired a tank shell at the hideout and later conducted a ground operation to assess damage and search for survivors.

With a history of quickly and efficiently replacing its fallen leaders, Hamas is looking for a new political leader based outside Gaza. Yahaya's brother Mohammad Sinwar is expected to take his place.

Yahya Sinwar was the mastermind of the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel in which over 1,200 people were killed, resulting in a year-long Israeli operation in Gaza, killing over 40,000.