Yahya Ibrahim Hassan Sinwar was born in 1962 in the Khan Younis refugee camp in southern Gaza. His family originally hails from the city of al-Majdal, from which they were forcibly displaced in 1948, according to Anadolu Agency.

In 1982, the Israeli army first arrested Sinwar and released him after a few days, only to arrest him again later that year, sentencing him to six months in prison for “participating in security activities against Israel.”

Sinwar spent 23 years in Israeli prisons before being released as part of a prisoner exchange deal between Hamas and Israel in 2011 known as the “Shalit Deal.” Under the deal executed on Oct 11, 2011, Israel released 1,027 Palestinian detainees in exchange for the release of Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit by Hamas.

After his release in 2011, Sinwar participated in Hamas’ internal elections in 2012, winning a seat on the political bureau and taking responsibility for supervising the group’s military wing, the Al-Qassam Brigades.

In September 2015, the US added Sinwar to its list of “international terrorists.” Israeli security services have also listed Sinwar as a top target for assassination in Gaza, according to Israeli media.

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