Israeli foreign minister calls for death of new Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar

Israel’s foreign minister has called for the death of Yahya Sinwar, the newly appointed leader of Hamas, as Israel braces for expected retaliation from Iran following its killing of a commander of Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon and the killing of Sinwar’s predecessor in Tehran last week.

Foreign Minister Israel Katz said on X that the appointment of Sinwar, who he called an arch-terrorist, “is yet another compelling reason to swiftly eliminate him and wipe this vile organization off the face of the earth.”

Israel has not claimed responsibility for the assassination of Hamas’ previous leader, Ismail Haniyeh, but his July 31 death prompted Iranian leaders to blame Israel and pledge a response.

On Wednesday, Hamas named Sinwar, one of the architects of the October 7 terror attack on Israel, as its new leader, a move that Katz said sends “a clear message to the world that the Palestinian issue is now completely controlled by Iran and Hamas.”

Katz also said Israel must maintain security control over the Israel-occupied West Bank in order to prevent Iran from establishing another “extremist stronghold.”

“Anything else will lead to the creation of another Iranian outpost in the region, which will explode in the face of the world and all regional countries,” Katz said.