Yahya Sinwar, the leader of Hamas, was killed during an Israeli military operation, Israeli Foreign Minister Israel Katz confirmed late on Thursday.

"The mass murderer Yahya Sinwar, responsible for the massacre and atrocities of October 7th, was eliminated today by IDF [Israel Defense Forces] soldiers," Katz said in a statement sent to the media. 

The Israeli military also confirmed Sinwar's death, saying in a social media post that he had been "eliminated."

The first reports of Sinwar's death came earlier in the day, but Israeli authorities took several hours to confirm it after carrying out DNA tests.

Israeli president praises soldiers for eliminating 'arch-terrorist' Sinwar

Israeli President Isaac Herzog praised his country's soldiers and security services for "eliminating the arch-terrorist Yahya Sinwar."

"Sinwar, the mastermind behind the deadly October 7th attack, has for years been responsible for heinous acts of terrorism against Israeli civilians, citizens of other countries, and the murder of thousands of innocent people." 

"Now, more than ever, we must act in every way possible to bring back the 101 hostages who are still being held in horrific conditions by Hamas terrorists in Gaza," he wrote online.

Sinwar: The October 7 mastermind

Sinwar was the architect behind the October 7 terror attacks last year on Israel, which left some 1,200 people dead and led to hundreds being taken hostage. Those terror attacks prompted Israel's current war against Hamas in Gaza.  

The 61-year-old became the political leader of Hamas in Gaza after the August assassination of his predecessor Ismail Haniyeh in Iran's capital, Tehran. Hamas, which rules over the Palestinian territory of Gaza, is deemed a terrorist organization not only by Israel, but also the US, Germany and several other countries.   

The Hamas leader was born in a Palestinian refugee camp in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis. He joined Hamas in 1987 shortly after it was founded. 

Sinwar spent decades in Israeli prisons for killing two Israeli soldiers and several Palestinians suspected of collaboration.

During the imprisonment, he read Israeli newspapers and reportedly became fluent in Hebrew. Israeli doctors also saved his life from a cancerous brain tumor and provided him with dental treatment. 

The 'Butcher of Khan Younis'

Sinwar was released in 2011 as part of a prisoner exchange for captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit. Palestinian militants had abducted Shalit in 2006.

Sinwar's ruthlessness and zero tolerance for Palestinian collaborators with Israel led him to being called the "Butcher of Khan Younis." 

rm, wd/ab (Reuters, AP)