Ex-hostages recount learning IDF killed Sinwar

The two women replied with what they described as a flat, “Oh, cool.”

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Ex-hostages Emily Damari and Romi Gonen described what it was like when they realized the IDF had eliminated Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar, the Oct. 7 mastermind, while they were being held in Gaza.

They told radio host Hadar Marks on a Galgalatz broadcast Monday that they saw Sinwar’s image on television and asked what was being discussed on the news.

“We see Sinwar in that famous picture on TV, with his ‘beautiful’ teeth,” the former hostages recounted. “I asked the terrorist what it said on TV. He said, ‘Your army killed 20 children.’ I replied, ‘But there’s a picture of Sinwar.’”

When she pointed out that the image clearly showed Sinwar, the captor denied it was him. According to Gonen, the same captor soon returned with a different explanation, saying their “lying army said that it killed Sinwar.” The two women replied with what they described as a flat, “Oh, cool.”

From that point, they recounted, their captors appeared to shift their tone as additional reports circulated. The women said each update adopted a more definitive description of Sinwar’s fate, until one of the terrorists eventually referred to him using a condolence phrase meaning “may Allah have mercy on him,” indicating he was presumed dead.

Once briefly left alone, Damari and Gonen said they looked at one another and quietly acknowledged that the reports were likely real.

Damari added that the situation took on an odd mix of tension and dark humor.

She said the captors mentioned that a squad commander was believed to be responsible for killing the Hamas leader, prompting the women to joke privately about how such a figure might have announced the act, imagining him declaring, “I killed the rat.”

In October 2024, Israeli forces killed Hamas politburo chief Yahya Sinwar during a firefight inside an abandoned structure on Ibn Sena Street in Rafah. The clash erupted after troops identified armed men outside the building.

According to the IDF, the soldiers did not initially know Sinwar was among those hiding inside. He and his escorts opened fire after being detected by a surveillance drone, prompting the troops to return fire and kill the group.

Shortly after the incident, images and video depicting Sinwar both during the exchange and in the moments following it began circulating online. Additional material showing the removal of his body from the site was also shared across social media platforms.